


Where the Wild Roses Grow

by LinkinPhoenix



Series: The Flower Harmony Collection [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, Ginny Weasley Bashing, Manipulative Albus Dumbledore, Molly Weasley Bashing, Multi, No Horcruxes, Prompt Fic, Ron Weasley Bashing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-08
Updated: 2021-02-25
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:20:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 99,180
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23538241
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LinkinPhoenix/pseuds/LinkinPhoenix
Summary: When Hermione is asked to the Yule Ball by Viktor Krum, Harry is stuck without a date, until he asks Fleur Delacour at least. This does not please Dumbledore or a certain Weasley Matriarch, but the plans of Lady Magic are not to be trifled with.
Relationships: Fleur Delacour/Hermione Granger/Harry Potter
Series: The Flower Harmony Collection [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1693870
Comments: 41
Kudos: 223
Collections: Harmony & Co Prompt Bank Fills





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Harry Potter Franchise or its characters. All characters used are the property of their respective owners.
> 
> Rated M for violence, language, & sexual themes.

_Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry, Scotland_

_December 10, 1994_

Harry emerged from his meeting with Professor McGonagall in a sort of daze, he’d just been informed that he needed a date for the Yule Ball, which he was required to attend as a Champion. He was averse to attention at the best of times but making a fool of himself in front of three schools and embarrassing his date wasn’t Harry Potter’s idea of a good night.

Harry’s idea of a good night was curled up with a book in front of the fire in the Gryffindor Common Room, preferably with Hermione by his side. Harry paused mid-step in the corridor, he’d had the thought about reading a book in front of the fire before, but this was the first time Hermione had accompanied that thought. Not that he was opposed to it, quite the opposite, he liked the idea of cud… sitting with Hermione. “I meant sitting,” He muttered admonishingly.

“Sitting where Harry?” A voice asked from behind him.

Harry looked up and around to find himself staring into the pretty brown eyes of Ginny Weasley. Harry had to blink, since when did he consider Ginny’s eyes pretty. How much time had he to consider whether she was pretty or not, given that in the three years she’d known him Ginny had fled from any room he was in due to her crush. Harry rubbed the side of his head as he felt a headache coming on.

“Uh, its nothing, can I help you, Ginny?” Harry asked wanting more than anything to get out of there and get a pain relief potion from Madam Pomfrey.

“Well, McGonagall…”

“Professor McGonagall, Ginny,” Harry reminded.

“Oh, sure, well, Professor McGonagall said there was going to a Ball to go along with the Tournament. I was wondering since Ron will probably be going with Hermione…”

Harry frowned. “Why would Ron be going with Hermione?”

“He fancies her, I thought you knew that, besides, it's not like anyone else will want to go with her…” Ginny explained, muttering the last part.

Harry’s disposition darkened at this comment. “Firstly, if Ron fancies Hermione, you’d think he’d treat her better. Also, I think you’d be surprised at how many people would want to go with Hermione.”

“Oh yeah, like who?” Ginny challenged.

“Me.”

Ginny’s eyes widened. “B-but you’re going with me, right?”

Harry scowled. “I think that’s for me to decide, don’t you? You’re a nice girl, most of the time, but you have this creepy fixation with me, and I’m sorry if that sounds rude, but it is creepy. You see me as the Boy-Who-Lived and not Harry. Hermione sees me as Harry and just Harry, and that’s what I want.”

“For a date?”

“For a relationship!” Harry yelled, then quickly snapped his mouth shut. “You didn’t hear that Ginny…”

“Whatever…” Ginny replied in a huff walking away, knocking into Harry as she left.

Harry shook his head and rubbed it again, Ginny was doing something different with her perfume, it smelled of treacle tart and something else. It was two competing smells, but the dominant one was old parchment.

* * *

Harry took a breath as his head began to clear and he resumed his path to the library, he was determined to talk to Hermione before someone else did. Unfortunately, as he cut through the stacks to reach her table, he heard something that made him stop and his blood run cold.

“You are Her-my-ninny?”

“It’s Hermione, how can I help you, Mister Krum?”

“Please call me Viktor, there is to be a Yule Ball, I would like you to accompany me.”

“Are you asking me?” Hermione asked Harry could see over the books that Hermione was blushing.

“Da.”

Harry could see that Hermione was weighing up the options in her head, it was that cute expression she would get where her eyebrows would knit together, and she’d bite her lower lip. He loved that expression, it meant she was thinking. Harry crossed his fingers and hoped the next thing Hermione said was no.

“Ok, I think that could be fun,” Harry’s heart sank as he walked away. “but only as friends, right?”

“Da.”

“Well, I’m looking forward to it.”

“As am I.”

Hermione glanced in the direction of the stacks, she’d been almost sure someone had been watching them during her exchange with Viktor, but no one was there.

* * *

Harry wandered around the castle until it was about an hour before curfew. He’d missed dinner but he didn’t much care, he spent the entire walk berating himself for not reaching Hermione sooner. As he’d told Ginny, plenty of guys wanted to ask Hermione to the Ball, he’d just never anticipated it wouldn’t be him she would say yes too. Now he was caught in two minds, he was at first worried why a Seventeen-year-old boy would ask a Fifteen-year-old girl to be his date. But there was another part of him that was intensely jealous, and he couldn’t decide if his concern about Hermione going with someone two years older than her was genuine or just an excuse so he could convince her to go with him.

Harry gave Hermione a weak smile as they entered the Gryffindor Common Room, Hermione turned to say something to Harry when Ron walked up. “Hey, Hermione, did you hear about the Ball?”

Hermione rolled her eyes at Harry before she turned around. “Yes, Ronald, I have heard about the Ball, I was there in class with you when Professor McGonagall announced it, remember?”

“Oh yeah, I guess I’d tuned the old bat out by then,” Ron replied, ploughing on before Hermione could respond. “Anyway, since I figured you wouldn’t have a date, I’d let you go with me!”

Harry facepalmed at this as Hermione gaped in shock. “You’d _let_ me go with you?”

“Yeah, I mean who else is going to ask you,” Ron replied.

Hermione smirked at this. “Well, actually, Ronald, I’ve agreed to be Viktor Krum’s date.”

Harry winced and looked away, he caught Ginny’s shocked but smug expression but chose to ignore it. Ron laughed. “Pull the other one Herms.”

“Don’t call her that Ron, besides she’s telling the truth, I was there…” Harry added making Hermione turn around to face him.

“I could feel someone watching, but I didn’t know who,” She commented.

Harry shrugged. “You were busy, I didn’t want to interrupt.”

“But you didn’t come over and join me after he left…” Hermione observed, sounding slightly dejected.

Harry wanted to respond but Ron cut into their conversation, grabbing Hermione by the arm. “What the hell are you doing going with Krum?!”

Harry reached out but Hermione was able to shake Ron off before he got to them. “What do you mean, why am I going with him?”

“He’s the enemy! He’s going up against Harry in the tournament!”

“A tournament you thought I’d cheated my way into a few weeks ago,” Harry observed.

Ron’s ears went pink at Harry’s observation. “Y-yeah, well, it’s not right, you shouldn’t go with him. Everyone knows you’re Harry Potter’s friend, he’s probably just going with you to pump you for info on what Harry’s figured out for the second task!”

Hermione scowled. “Did you think that someone might want to go with me because they like me?”

Harry winced and looked down at the ground at this point. Ron scoffed. “Oh yeah, because a famous Quidditch player would so want to go with a bu…”

Harry was in front of Ron in a flash, putting himself between Hermione and Ron. “For the sake of our friendship, I’m going to ask you not to say what you’re about to say.”

“Or what?”

“Or I’m going to punch you in the face,” Harry replied quietly.

Ron simply glared at Harry, then at Hermione and stalked away angrily, while Harry led Hermione to the other side of the Common Room, to a seat near the fire. “I can’t believe him; how dare he accuse me of telling Viktor anything about what you’re doing?”

“I know you wouldn’t do that Hermione, but Ron is right in one sense.”

“Oh?” Hermione asked icily.

“Well, it’s just a bit weird that a Seventeen-Year-Old famous Quidditch Player would ask a Fifteen-Year-Old girl to be his date…”

“Is it, did you consider that maybe he asked me because he doesn’t want to ask one of his vapid fangirls, that maybe he finds me interesting or beautiful?” Hermione asked angrily, ignoring the derisive snort from across the room.

“Those could be the reasons, but it's still weird and I think you should turn him down?”

“Do you, what gives you the right to tell me what to do, you’re not my father!”

“But I am trying to look out for you, and I’m telling you not to go with Viktor Krum!”

“You don’t get to tell me what to do Harry Potter, and until you realize that, don’t talk to me!”

As Hermione stormed up to bed Harry scowled and looked down at the floor. He felt a slap on the arm and looked up into Ron’s smiling face. “I knew you agreed with me.”

Harry just glared at Ron. “Fuck off,” He replied before going to bed himself.

* * *

_December 11, 1994_

Harry was up very early the next morning, he sat on the chair closest to the girl’s dorm stairway. He knew Hermione was always an early riser, she liked to go over her homework before starting the day. He was right as a few minutes after he arrived, Hermione walked down the stairs. When she spotted him, she turned to walk back up, but Harry ran from his seat to the base of the stairs. “Hermione, can we talk, please?”

Hermione huffed and nodded reluctantly walking down to join him in the Common Room. It hurt him to see the redness of her eyes, and it hurt worse to know that he was the cause of her crying. Harry reached out and gathered her hands in his, partly to make sure she wouldn’t run away. “First, I’m sorry.”

“For?”

“Everything I said, specifically that Viktor Krum wouldn’t want to go with you because you’re not pretty or smart, you’re both. I was and am genuinely worried about you, but… there was something else that made me not want you to go with him.”

“Oh?”

Harry blushed. “I was jealous… I am jealous, I wanted to go with you, but Viktor beat me to it.”

Hermione smiled and blushed. “I would have liked that, but I’ve already said yes…”

“I-I know, and you should go with him. I just hope you’re ok with who I’m going to ask instead…”

“Depends on who it is.”

Harry smiled rubbing the back of his head. “I’m going to ask, Fleur Delacour.”

Hermione raised an eyebrow. “Really?”

Harry shrugged. “I mean, if I can’t ask the most beautiful girl in the castle to the dance, I should ask the second most beautiful girl.”

Hermione rolled her eyes. “Very smooth, shall we go to breakfast?”

“Sure, um…” Harry stopped, tugging Hermione back towards him. “Listen, n-next Hogsmeade weekend, would you like to go with me, o-on a date, u-unless, y-you know you and K-Krum…”

Hermione smiled and gave Harry a peck on the cheek. “I would love to go on a date to Hogsmeade with you.”

Harry’s face brightened. “Really?”

“Yes, Harry, I made it clear to Viktor that we’re just friends, nothing more. It’s like I said last night, I don’t think he wants to give his fangirls any encouragement. He saw me and asked, that’s all there is to it.”

Harry nodded. “Ok, I’m glad.”

Hermione giggled. “You are jealous.”

Harry blushed. “Maybe…”

* * *

As Harry and Hermione entered the Great Hall, he felt a tug on his arm. He turned to look at Hermione who nodded over to the Ravenclaw table. Fleur Delacour was sitting with a petite blonde with oversized eyes, she smiled serenely as her companion animatedly explained something to her.

“Now?!” Harry asked sounding nervous and slightly alarmed.

“If you don’t do it now someone else is going to swoop in and ask, again.” Hermione insisted.

Harry nodded and squared his shoulders marching up the Ravenclaw table with Hermione following a short distance behind as the eyes of the half-empty hall watched. “Good Morning Miss Delacour.”

“Good Morning Mister…” Fleur began but stopped when Harry was elbowed out of the way by Roger Davies.

“Hey babe, go to the…” Roger began before stopping as a frowning Fleur let her Allure flare. Once she was certain Roger would be a drooling mess for the next few minutes, she returned her gaze to the girl sitting opposite.

“Um, Miss Delacour?” Harry asked again nervously.

Fleur turned around and raised a manicured eyebrow observing the boys around Harry who all had a vacant drooling expression about them. “Oui, how can I help you, Mister Potter?”

Harry took a deep breath. “Would you go to the Yule Ball with me?”

Fleur regraded him for a full minute before nodding. “Oui, I think that would be acceptable.”

Harry let out a sigh of relief, then blushed. “Sorry, I was very nervous coming over here to ask.”

“As you should be,” Fleur replied with a smirk. “Would you like to sit with us, oh, my companion, Luna Lovegood.”

“I know who you are, Harry Potter, the wrackspurts have told me all about you,” Luna replied when Harry reached over to shake her hand.

Harry paused for a moment, eyeing Fleur’s companion hesitantly. Luna continued to smile. “It’s ok Harry Potter, I know I say strange things. My Housemates call me Loony.”

Both Fleur and Harry frowned. “That’s not very nice, have you told Professor Flitwick?”

“He didn’t do anything about it…” Luna mumbled.

“I see…” Harry replied looking up at the head table, where he spotted Professor Flitwick chatting to Professor McGonagall. His eyes wandered up the table to where Professor Dumbledore was sitting eating breakfast while reading the Daily Prophet. While he would never be able to prove it, he guessed that it was Dumbledore who had prevented Flitwick from stopping people harassing Luna. Dumbledore’s standing in Harry’s eyes had fallen significantly over the past few months after Sirius was forced back on the run, Harry had re-examined his interaction with the Headmaster, making a list of all the times he could have stepped in and stopped something happening and didn’t. The results did not make for happy reading.

Harry shook his head. “If people keep harassing you, you can come to talk to Hermione or me, we’ll try to help if we can.”

Luna looked down at her plate. “Thank you.”

“Luna, look at me?” Harry asked and Luna reluctantly complied. “You never need to thank me for being a friend.”

“You want to be my friend?” Luna asked.

“I do if you want that?”

Luna nodded enthusiastically, which brought smiles to Fleur, Harry, and Hermione’s faces. Harry gave the two girls a short bow. “Good day ladies.”

Harry was about to walk back to Hermione when Fleur’s voice drew him back. “Would you like to join us for breakfast?”

“As long as Hermione can join us too?”

Fleur smiled and nodded. “Oui, I would like that, I have heard many good things about her since I got to the castle.”

Hermione returned Fleur’s smile as the two sat down with Fleur and Luna. As they ate Harry glanced up, he could feel the hairs on his neck standing up, as if warning him that something was wrong, but when he looked around, he couldn’t see anything amiss.

* * *

What Harry didn’t see was the Headmaster observing him over his copy of the Daily Prophet. The paper also hid the frown that crossed his lips when he heard Harry invite the French Champion to the Yule Ball. Dumbledore could already feel the Molly Weasley induced headache developing behind his eyes, he was aware of Molly’s plans for her daughter and the Boy-Who-Lived and none of those plans involved a beautiful French Veela. But Dumbledore would sit back and wait, nothing would be gained by alienating Harry and it was only the Yule Ball. Molly Weasley would have a son-in-law, she would just have to practice her rarely used patience, he decided.

Dumbledore groaned and shifted his paper further to hide from view when he caught sight of Ron Weasley entering the Great Hall. He sometimes wondered if the youngest Weasley boy was dropped on his head as a baby, it would explain many things. Regardless, while Ronald hadn’t inherited his mother’s shrewdness, he had inherited her temper, something he was making full use of at this moment.

“What the hell, you bloody traitor! I thought you sided with me!” Ron roared as he marched over to the Ravenclaw table.

Harry sighed as he rubbed his face. “The keyword there is you _thought_ I agreed with you, Ron, I don’t. I was being a prat to Hermione, she’s allowed to go with anyone she wants and if she wants to go with Viktor Krum then I’ll support her decision because she’s my best friend.”

Ron spluttered and glared at Hermione. “I know she’s your best _female_ friend Harry, but us guys…”

Harry stood up and put himself between Hermione and Ron. “No, I said my _best_ friend, my best friend stood by me when my name came out of the Goblet, my best friend helped me research the best way to survive facing a Dragon. My best friend was there for me when everyone else in the castle turned on me. You did none of those things Ron, you’ve been a prat to both of us you’ve been a prat to Hermione for four years and you’ve never apologised. So I’m done with you, maybe one day, if you grow up and apologise for your behaviour we might be friends again until then you can piss off.”

Harry held his hand out for Hermione. “We should go, we don’t want to be late for class.”

* * *

Hermione nodded and took his hand, the two-bid farewell to Fleur and Luna and walked out of the Great Hall. A couple of minutes later they stopped in an empty classroom and Harry sat down at one of the desks, burying his face in his hands. Hermione sat beside him, rubbing his shoulders gently. “Are you ok?”

Harry nodded. “Yeah, I think so, he’s been such a jerk recently I couldn’t let it slide anymore.”

“I know, but he was your first friend, are you sure…”

Harry turned in his chair to face Hermione, taking her hand in his. “I’m very sure, all you’ve done for three years is supported me and I’ve been a total prat about it. But not having Ron around gave me a lot of time to think, and I realised you’re my best friend, not him, you act as a best friend should. So, I’m sorry for being a complete jerk when I got the Firebolt, I should have trusted you.”

“Harry, you already apologised for that.”

“I know, but I’m apologising again, I should have listened to you and not Ron. He’s always been a jerk to you, and I was a coward for not saying something before now. I hope I can be a better friend from now on.”

Hermione smiled and nodded, squeezing his hand gently. “You already are, and it’s not cowardly to want to keep a friend. Ron knew he was your first friend and he used it so he could be horrible to people and get away with it. He’s the bad person here, not you.”

Harry nodded. “Thanks, Hermione.”

“You’re welcome, now we need to get to class.”

* * *

As Harry and Hermione exited their last class for the day, Harry heard someone calling his name. “Oh, hello Ginny.”

Ginny stopped in the middle of the corridor, smiling brightly at Harry. “Could we talk, alone?”

Hermione raised an eyebrow glancing at Harry, who nodded, albeit reluctantly. “I’ll meet you back in the Common room.”

Harry followed Ginny down the corridor and quickly found an empty classroom, Harry reflected that it was only because of Voldemort that so many of these classrooms were empty. Before the first blood war there used to be many more magical children in the United Kingdom. Harry sat on a desk facing Ginny, the headache from the day before returning full force.

“So, are you going to ask me now?”

Harry blinked in confusion. “Ask you what?”

Ginny rolled her eyes. “Ask me to go to the Yule Ball with you! Granger is going with Viktor Krum, so you missed your chance, but you still have a chance to go with me, but only if you ask first!”

Harry’s eyes widened and he barked out a laugh which confused Ginny. “What’s funny?”

“I’m just amazed what happened this morning hasn’t reached every corner of the castle by now, Ginny, I asked Fleur Delacour to go with me at breakfast, I’m not and I don’t want to go with you to the Yule Ball, or any ball. I don’t like you that way.”

“B-but why not!” Ginny demanded angrily.

Harry sighed rubbing the back of his head. “I told you this already, you like the Boy-Who-Lived, the one in those stupid books. That’s not me, I’m just Harry Potter.”

“But Harry Potter is the Boy-Who-Lived!” Ginny protested.

Harry shook his head. “No Ginny, the Boy-Who-Lived is a Dragon slaying, damsel saving fantasy, he’s a character in a book. Harry Potter is a fourth-year student at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry who must watch the girl he likes go to a Christmas ball with someone else because he wasn’t quick enough to ask her first. The only thing we have in common is that Halloween night in nineteen eighty-one we lost our parents.”

* * *

Harry gave Ginny a hard stare as he walked out of the classroom and back up to the Gryffindor Common Room. He sighed and shook his head as he dropped into a chair opposite Hermione who was already pouring over her homework. “Girl trouble?”

“Ginny trouble, she’s convinced we should go to the Yule Ball together, I’ve turned her down twice now, but she doesn’t seem to get it.”

“She has a crush on you Harry, you’ve known that since you met her.”

“She has a crush on the Boy-Who-Lived, there’s a difference,” Harry replied.

Hermione tapped her bottom lip with the end of her quill and nodded thoughtfully. “I suppose you’re right.”

The two looked up when Ginny noisily entered the Common Room, she threw a glare in Harry’s direction as she walked upstairs to the girl’s dorm. Hermione sighed and looked down at her notes. “You should probably steer clear of the Twins for a while, they adore their little sister.”

Harry groaned in response. “Where’s a Dragon when you need one…”

**To Be Continued...**


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Harry Potter Franchise or its characters. All characters used are the property of their respective owners.
> 
> Rated M for violence, language, & sexual themes.
> 
> This is a Horcrux free zone.
> 
> Warning: Manipulative Dumbledore & Weasley Bashing (Ron, Molly, & Ginny.)

_Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry_

_December 25, 1994_

Harry pulled his cloak tighter around himself as he crossed the snowy expanse the grounds of Hogwarts had become after a full day of snowfall. He was making his way to the Beauxbaton Carriage to collect his date for the Yule Ball. He silently hoped he could avoid a situation during the dance as he faced in the days leading up to Christmas.

Aside from Ginny and Ron throwing glares at him every chance they got, he also had to contend with another problem, angry Ravenclaws. One angry Ravenclaw in particular.

* * *

*Flashback*

Harry adjusted his bag on his shoulder as he walked back to the Gryffindor Common Room after Divinations. It felt heavier than usual, he wondered if this was the work of the Weasley Twins, Hermione did warn him they might seek revenge for hurting their sister by refusing to go with her to the Yule Ball. But then he remembered it was full of the Defence books Hermione had told him to borrow for his self-study. He was once again grateful that Hermione was his friend, the spells he was learning outside of class were going to save his life, sooner rather than later.

Harry was so lost in his musings he didn’t even notice the hand that reached out to drag him into an empty classroom. He was quickly relieved of his bag and shoved down onto the floor where he was kicked in the face by one of his assailants. This broke his glasses and left him with a gash over his eye from the shattered glass.

Harry peered up at the people who were assaulting him, squinting to try and make out something in the blurry vista his world had become. “What the hell do you want?”

“An apology,” A familiar voice spat.

“Davies? What are you talking about, I don’t have anything to apologise for!”

Harry was hauled to his feet and punched in the stomach, which made him stumble back into a chair behind him. “I disagree, Potter, you stole my date for the Yule Ball, I think that entitles me to an apology!”

Harry doubled over coughing for a few seconds before responding. “Stole who?”

“That French bint, their Champion, dipshit! I heard Gryffindors were stupid, but I didn’t think they were this dim. How the fuck did Granger get sorted into their house and not ours?!”

Harry glared in the general direction of Roger Davies. “Hermione is brave and loyal, unlike Ravenclaws who don’t have the balls to confront someone face to face, you have to ambush someone and beat them up when they can’t see.”

“Oh, we are going to make you eat those words!” Davies responded before another voice cut in.

“I don’t think so!” Cedric Diggory yelled from the door, even though he was near the back of the classroom Harry could feel the powerful aura Cedric was radiating. He heard footsteps and suddenly someone was kneeling in front of him. “Cho?”

“That’s right Harry, don’t worry, we’ll get you fixed up,” Cho assured him as Harry felt the pain from the cut on his head disappearing.

“Fuck off Diggory, this has nothing to do with you!” Davies roared angrily.

“I think it has everything to do with me, Harry is my friend, and I protect my friends, that’s the way things work in Hufflepuff.”

Davies huffed angrily and signalled to his friends they were leaving, as they made it to the door Cedric stopped them. “Tell your friends, if Harry is hassled again, they’ll have to answer to everyone in Hufflepuff. Remember, don’t go poking a sleeping Dragon, you won’t like the result.”

Davies simply glared at Cedric as he left. Harry watched in surprise through his newly repaired glasses as Cedric crossed the classroom to stand in front of him and Cho. “We’re friends?”

Cedric shrugged. “Sure, you warned me about the Dragons when you didn’t have to if that’s ok with you of course?”

Cedric stuck out his hand and smiled, Harry returned the smile and happily accepted Cedric’s hand of friendship giving it a firm shake. Harry’s hand then went to the back of his head. “Look, I am sorry about stealing your spotlight… I didn’t put my name in the Goblet.”

Cedric nodded. “I know Harry, I believe you, I’ll admit I didn’t at first, but then I saw that Dragon… After that I sort of wondered if someone put my name in on my behalf, I was almost sure I was smarter than trying to face off against a full-grown Dragon.”

“I certainly thought that…” Cho mumbled with a rueful smile.

Harry smiled at them. “At least you weren’t stupid enough to try and outfly it.”

“I don’t know Harry, you sure as hell impressed me with your flying,” Cho replied.

“I’ll take chasing a Snitch any day,” Harry replied picking up his book bag. “Thanks for sticking up for me and repairing my glasses. I need to get back to the Gryffindor Dorm before dinner, Hermione is probably wondering where I am.”

“We’ll walk with you; I don’t trust Davies not to try to pull something even after I warned him.”

Harry nodded and the three walked the remaining distance to the Gryffindor Common room. They talked about Quidditch until the reached the Portrait Hole. Harry was about to give the Password when Cedric stopped him. “I owe you for telling me about the Dragons…”

“You don’t…” Harry began but was silenced by Cedric.

“Regardless I’m going to give you a hint,” Cedric replied to which Harry nodded. “Take the egg for a bath, use the Prefects bathroom, the password is Bath Bubbles.”

Harry raised a curious eyebrow, but instead of questioning the advice he thanked the older boy and bid them farewell. Once he was inside, he was approached by his best friend. “Where have you been, I was worried!”

Harry smiled to himself, amused that his prediction had proven correct. “I’ll tell you after I put my bag away.”

*End Flashback*

* * *

Harry was glad on reflection that he was able to talk Hermione down from hexing Roger Davies up and down the castle for attacking him. It was amusing and if Harry was being honest, slightly hot to see Hermione so wound up, it made her wild hair go even wilder and magic seemed to ripple against her skin. On the other hand, Harry cursed himself yet again for not getting to Hermione first to ask her to the Yule Ball. However, the vision of beauty that was descending the stairs of the Carriage almost made up for that. Fleur was wearing a silver ballgown with a slit up the side, it was mostly hidden beneath a heavy white travelling cloak with a fur collar. Harry returned Fleur’s radiant smile as she stepped into the snow. “Bonjour Mademoiselle.”

“Bonjour Arry,” Fleur replied, returning his slight bow. “You didn’t have to collect me from the Carriage, you could have waited until I was in the Castle to meet me.”

Harry pressed his hand against his breast feigning being insult. “Mademoiselle, a Gentleman doesn’t let a Lady go unescorted when they are supposed to go to a Ball together. And I endeavour to be a Gentleman.”

Fleur almost laughed at Harry’s theatrics but managed to control herself. “Goodness Arry, how do the girls survive around you with moves like that?”

Harry grinned. “After four years in the same Castle, they’re immune to my charms.”

“I see, is that why you had to ask a girl from another school to be your date?” Fleur asked as they entered the Castle.

Harry was saved from having to respond by Professor McGonagall calling them over to the anti-chamber that was attached to the Great Hall. As Fleur and Harry ducked inside, he caught Hermione’s eye, she was standing with Krum who was making polite conversation with Cedric and Cho. The three were talking about Quidditch and Hermione looked bored. She quickly separated from her date and walked over to the two. Harry was almost mesmerised by her Periwinkle blue dress but was slightly unhappy someone had managed to tame her beautiful long curls into a bun. Harry smiled rubbing his arm awkwardly. “You look beautiful.”

Hermione blushed looking away. “Thank you, you look very handsome, o-oh, and you look beautiful Fleur.”

“Thank you, Hermione, Arry is right, you look beautiful.”

Hermione’s blush deepened as Viktor abruptly ended his conversation with Cedric and Cho. “Her-my-ninny, it is almost time.”

Harry frowned watching the way Viktor grabbed Hermione by the elbow, leading her away from him and Fleur. He was slightly happier when Hermione wrenched her elbow out of his grip and looped her arm with his. Harry wanted to say something, but McGonagall once again interrupted him calling for the couples to line up to be introduced.

Once inside Harry deliberately chose the seat furthest away from Percy Weasley. The glare that was sent in his direction told Harry that Percy knew that he’d turned Ginny down for a date in favour of Fleur. Harry pondered whether Percy knew about the Howler Molly Weasley had sent a few days after his and Ginny’s second confrontation.

* * *

*Flashback*

Harry was piling his plate with breakfast as the morning Owl post arrived, Harry wasn’t expecting anything that day, he’d sent off a note to Snuffles a few days before with Hedwig, assuring him he was ok, despite being entered into the Tri-Wizards Tournament. But as Harry was about to make himself an Egg and Bacon sandwich a very tired Weasley Family Owl landed in the middle of the table. A smouldering red envelope was leaving a burn mark where it landed when it burst open in front of them.

“HARRY POTTER HOW DARE YOU TURN DOWN MY DARLING GINNY FOR A DATE! SHE WOULD BE A MUCH MORE RESPECTABLE DATE THAN SOME FRENCH TROLLOP! UNTIL YOU WISE UP AND APOLOGISE TO GINNY YOU ARE BANNED FROM MY HOUSE AND I WILL NOT BE SENDING YOU A CHRISTMAS JUMPER EITHER! YOU SHOULD BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELF! I DON’T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO THE SWEET BOY WE INVITED INTO OUR HOME BUT HE WOULD BE DISGUSTED WITH YOU!”

The Howler then burst into flame leaving only ashes behind as the Slytherin table roared with laughter. Harry scowled but chose to ignore them and the smug look on Ginny’s face in favour of digging into his breakfast.

Meanwhile, Dumbledore had once again buried himself behind his copy of the Daily Prophet, he knew a Howler was Molly Weasley’s chosen method of communication when she was angry. However, this left him in the frustrating position of having to talk Molly down so they could patch things up before the Summer holidays. Dumbledore needed Harry at the Weasley’s so they could keep an eye on him and not get too close to the Muggles girl or learn his place in society from Sirius. Either could be devastating to his plans for the boy, which happily coincided with Molly’s plans for him. Dumbledore, however, was nothing if not patient, he had six months to fix things between Harry and the Weasley’s, and even if the situation didn’t improve he could always rely on Tom to give things a nudge in the right direction, all Dumbledore had to do was wait.

*End Flashback*

* * *

After dinner, the Champions, and their dates were invited to open the dancing. This was the part Harry had been dreading because, despite help from Fleur and Hermione, he still wasn’t a great dancer. Harry looked up into Fleur’s eyes as they took to the floor and she smiled at him. “Just relax, Arry, remember what we practised, and you’ll be fine.”

Harry nodded and caught a quick but encouraging smile from Hermione that made him feel a bit better. Although once they started dancing Harry found he had very little to worry about, he surprised himself with how good he performed with the eyes of three schools on him.

After the first dance the two stayed on the dance floor for a second, Harry frowned slightly when he noticed that Krum had held Hermione for a second dance when she’d tried to walk over to him and Fleur. Harry returned his gaze to Fleur and gave her an apologetic look. “Sorry Fleur, I should be focusing on you.”

“It’s ok Arry, I saw it too, I don’t think Hermione is having as much fun as I am, or any at all.”

“I hope you don’t mind if I invite her to dance next?” Harry asked.

“Not at all, I would have suggested it if you hadn’t.”

As the song ended someone tapped Harry on the shoulder, to his surprise it was another beautiful blonde, Daphne Greengrass. “Good evening, may I have the next dance?”

Harry nodded, kissing Fleur on the knuckle as she walked back to her seat. The band struck up another song and the two began moving around the dance floor, to the surprise of many. Daphne leaned in so she could be heard over the music. “If anyone asks, officially I asked for the dance because my father insisted.”

“Oh-kay, what’s the unofficial reason?”

“I need to pass on a warning and Krum won’t let anyone near Granger, she’s in danger.”

* * *

*Flashback*

Daphne was walking down the stairs from her dorm to the Slytherin Common Room, the Yule Ball was in a few hours and her dorm mates couldn’t help but gossip about who was going with who. Daphne wasn’t interested, she was solely focused on how people were going to react when they saw her on the arm of Neville Longbottom. Thankfully her family’s status in the Wizengamot protected her from any reprisals that might have been dreamed up by the likes of Malfoy, but as she was about to discover, not everyone was that lucky.

Daphne paused halfway down the stairs when she heard the distinctive laugh of Draco Malfoy, mixed with another laugh she couldn’t identify. But then the voice placed it. “Draco, what are we drinking too?” Viktor Krum asked.

“A victory for the proper order,” Malfoy replied.

“Isn’t it a little early? The ball doesn’t commence for another few hours, even then I won’t be able to get the mudblood alone until much later.”

Daphne heard Malfoy scoff at that. “Details, I have faith in your talents Viktor, as long as you keep her away from Potter everything will be fine.”

“Are you sure he won’t be a problem? Even at Drumstrung, we’ve heard rumours about him slaying a Basilisk. I would rather not face someone who can do that when they’re angry.”

“He’s going with that French creature; he’ll be so distracted trying to get into her pants he won’t notice anything is wrong until it’s too late. By then you’ll have ruined the mudblood and we can throw her back to Potter. Maybe he’ll let the Weasel have her, it’s not like he’ll want to touch her once you’re done…”

Daphne heard the two laugh as she retreated quietly up the stairs, thoughts of her date with Neville forgotten, she had new worries. She needed to talk to Granger or Potter but she wasn’t sure how to do it without tipping off Malfoy, but as she entered her Dorm room she spotted the letter her father had sent days earlier, _encouraging_ her to get close to Potter so he could discuss business opportunities with the Heir to the Most Noble and Ancient House of Potter.

*End Flashback*

* * *

Harry’s eyes burned with anger as Daphne finished her story, but she held onto him firmly. “You idiot, you can’t go charging over there and attack Viktor Krum, you need to be a bit more Slytherin about this.”

“Hermione is in danger, I need to do something,” Harry hissed.

“I know, but let me handle it, you just keep dancing with Delacour, I’ll make my move soon, ok?”

Harry nodded. “Fine, but can I ask you something first?” Daphne nodded in response. “Did your father want to talk to me or was that just an excuse for the warning?”

“Oh no, he does want to talk to you, he’s interested in pursuing some business opportunities with you.”

Harry groaned. “It’s not Boy-Who-Lived merchandise, is it? I’ve seen it on sale in Diagon Alley and I hate it.”

Daphne gave him a funny look. “No, don’t you know who my family is?”

Harry shook his head to which Daphne gave a huff. “Well, I guess that’s something we’ll need to discuss later, right now we should save your girl.”

Harry blushed as the song ended and Fleur approached. “She’s not my girl…”

Daphne rolled her eyes. “Right.”

As Fleur and Harry resumed dancing, Fleur noticed the anger in his eyes. “Are you ok, Arry?”

“Yeah, listen…” Harry began before explaining what Daphne had told him, he smiled as Fleur muttered several colourful profanities in French under her breath as she looked into his eyes again. “I will back you up.”

Harry nodded. “Thanks.”

After another dance, Harry saw Daphne cut in between Hermione and Viktor. Meanwhile, Neville asked Fleur to dance which gave Harry his opening. He quickly crossed the floor and offered Hermione his hand. “May I have this dance?”

Hermione smiled brightly and nodded. “I’ve been wanting to dance with you all night.”

The two made their way out to join the other couples, Harry smiled as Hermione pressed herself against him. Having her in his arms somehow felt right. “Are you ok?”

“I guess, it’s just… Viktor won’t leave me alone, he’s been hovering over me all night and any time I try to say something to you he always steers me in the other direction. It’s weird and creepy.”

Harry nodded, even now he could feel Viktor’s eyes on them. “Hermione, do you trust me?”

“With my life.”

“Daphne Greengrass asked me to dance earlier, she told me Viktor is planning to hurt you…”

Hermione’s eyes widened. “What, why?”

“He’s a Blood supremacist and is cosy with Malfoy, they want to hurt me by attacking you.”

Hermione buried her head in Harry’s chest. “I knew it… Ron was right…”

Harry pulled Hermione back so he could look into her eyes. “No, he wasn’t, you’re one of the most beautiful girls here tonight, and any guy would be lucky to have you on their arm. You had no way of knowing that Krum is a bastard.”

Hermione wiped the tears from her eyes and smiled at Harry, she made to say something when Viktor walked up and pushed Harry away grabbing Hermione by the elbow. “You will dance with me now.”

Harry snatched Viktor’s hand away from Hermione’s elbow, pulling him away from her and back towards him. “Hermione’s finished dancing for the night.”

“Her-my-ninny is my date, she will dance with me,” Krum stated as his brown eyes drilled into Harry’s.

Harry was dimly aware that the attention of the entire hall was now on Hermione, Krum, and him, but he didn’t care, he was going to protect his best friend, consequences be damned. “Hermione doesn’t feel well, I was about to escort her up to bed.”

Viktor scowled. “Then I will escort her, I am her date.”

“You are a guest in this castle, you can’t enter the Gryffindor dorms,” Harry pointed out, tightening his grip on Krum’s arm as magic rippled across his skin. Hermione who was standing several feet away could feel the hair on her neck standing on end. She walked up and pulled Harry’s hand away from Krum’s arm giving the Bulgarian a placating smile. “Thank you for your concern Viktor, but Harry’s right, I’m not feeling the best and Harry knows the quickest way to get back to the dorms. I’m in safe hands with him.”

Krum could see that Harry’s eyes were glowing slightly and he nodded backing away to where the Slytherin contingent was sitting. Harry escorted Hermione out of the Great Hall as the band started up again, with Fleur joining them at the door. Once they were in the Entrance Hall, Harry relaxed a little giving Fleur a kiss on the knuckles. “I apologise for cutting our date short Mademoiselle, but I need to make sure Hermione gets back to the Common Room safely.”

Fleur smiled at Harry giving a peck on each cheek. “I don’t mind, you are protecting your best friend, I knew I made the right decision to go with you.”

Harry blushed rubbing the back of his neck as Professor McGonagall drew their attention. “Mister Potter, the Headmaster would like to have a word with you in his office.”

Harry nodded frowning, his eyes briefly flickering between Hermione and Fleur. “As soon as I’ve escorted Hermione up to the Gryffindor Dorms, Professor.”

“The Headmaster was quite insistent,” McGonagall replied sternly, but then softened a bit. “I will make sure Miss Granger returns to the Gryffindor Dorms safely.”

“And I will go with her,” Fleur offered.

Harry nodded. “Fine, should I come back down to see?”

Fleur smiled brightly but shook her head. “Non, I will be fine, as soon as Hermione is back in her Dorm, I will return to the Carriage.”

* * *

A couple of minutes later Harry was called into the Headmaster’s office. “Ah, good, you’re here, please sit Mister Potter.”

Harry’s frown from earlier returned, Dumbledore usually called him ‘Young Harry’, calling him ‘Mister Potter’ means he’d upset Dumbledore somehow. “If it’s all the same, I think I’d prefer to stand, sir.”

“As you wish, I wanted to discuss the confrontation you had with Mister Krum earlier,” Dumbledore began.

Harry kept his eyes focused on Dumbledore’s desk, not trusting himself to look at Dumbledore and not speak out of turn. “ _Mister_ Krum was being disrespectful to Hermione…”

“Be that as it may, Young Harry, you should have left it for Miss Granger to deal with.”

“Hermione is my best friend and I was worried about her, I’m not going to leave her at the mercy of some je… guy, just because she’s not my date.”

“Did you have reason to believe Miss Granger was in danger?”

Harry opened his mouth but then closed it again, Daphne had tried to tell Harry about Malfoy and Krum’s plan surreptitiously, he owed it to her to not tell Dumbledore. “No sir, I just saw how he was treating her during the dance. It made me uncomfortable, it's not how a man should act with a woman.”

“You have to consider that Mister Krum comes from a different culture Harry, they do things differently where he’s from.”

“Hermione isn’t from Bulgaria, he needs to respect that, I’m willing to give a little but so does he, that’s how compromise works.”

Dumbledore made a non-committal sound in his throat as he continued to watch Harry as the younger man stared stubbornly at the table. “Is that all, sir?”

“No Harry, I also wanted to discuss your choice of date.”

Harry took a deep breath to calm himself before speaking. “Was there something wrong with Fleur, sir?”

“Not as such, but you must consider your image and the image of the school, Miss Delacour is certainly a beautiful young woman and I can understand a boy your age being swept up in the glamour of having such a girl on your arm. But I think going forward you should consult with me before you make these kinds of decisions.”

Harry let out a huff of frustration. “And who would you have suggested as my date, sir?”

“I understand Miss Weasley was quite taken with the idea of being your date, and she’s certainly from a fine upstanding British wizarding family…”

“But Fleur is a French Veela, is that it, _sir_?” Harry replied angrily.

“Harry, please, believe me, I have nothing against Miss Delacour, but we have to consider how the rest of the country will view her being on your arm. It sends the wrong sort of signals…”

Harry took another deep breath. “Sir, I think I should go, you’re beginning to damage my calm.”

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow and sighed. “Very well then, I’m sure we’ll speak about this again when you’ve had time to think over my advice. I’m sure by then you’ll come to see I was right.”

“Goodnight sir.”

“Goodnight Young Harry.”

Once the door to his office was closed Dumbledore frowned, he took off his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose. He’d not anticipated such strong push back from the boy, Dumbledore had figured this Veela issue was simply a flight of fancy on Harry’s part. But it seems it was the start of a pattern of rebellious behaviour that he would have to nix while it was in its early stages.

* * *

Harry stomped down the stairs and back up to the Gryffindor dorms, he could hear the party still going strong downstairs, but he didn’t care, he was tired and angry, and he wanted to go to bed. He was surprised to find Hermione waiting for him in the Common Room, sitting in his usual chair by the fire. As soon as he was inside, she rushed over wrapping him in a hug, having changed into some pyjamas and a robe while waiting for Harry. “Are you ok, what did the Headmaster want?”

Harry hugged her back leading Hermione over to the sofa near the fire. “Nothing very interesting, he admonished me for confronting Krum and for having Fleur as my date.”

“Why?” Hermione asked sounding puzzled.

“She wasn’t the right sort of witch, its bad for my image, according to him.”

Hermione’s eyes widened. “Because she’s French or a Veela?”

“Both.”

Hermione’s mouth dropped open, and for the first time since he’d known her, Hermione swore. “That bloody hypocritical old bigot!”

At that Harry burst out laughing, Hermione huffed petulantly. “This isn’t funny, Harry!”

“No, it isn’t, but your swearing is!” Harry replied.

“Oh, you’re such a prat sometimes…” Hermione muttered.

Harry gently scooped Hermione’s hand into his. “I’m sorry your date turned out to be such a jerk, Hermione, you deserved better.”

Hermione leaned into Harry, resting her head on his shoulder. “I don’t understand why, how you can treat someone like that…”

“I don’t know, but with the way Professor Moody glares at Headmaster Karakoff, I’d say he’s bad news. Maybe Krum picked up some bad habits, or maybe he’s just an unapologetic asshole…”

“Language Harry.”

The two sat for a while longer staring into the fire, before Hermione yawned. “I think it’s time for bed.”

Harry smiled and stood up. “Just one last thing, I’ll be right back.”

Harry rushed up the stairs to his dorm and was back down seconds later with a wizarding wireless. He switched it on and turned into the WWN, where Celestina Warbeck was performing. Harry offered Hermione his hand. “We never did finish our dance.”

**To Be Continued…**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I should have had this done days ago but I got wrapped up playing Persona 5 Royal.
> 
> Anyway, the Harry Potter Lexicon describes Viktor Krum’s eyes as ‘dark’ which was super helpful… So, I looked into the fellow who played him in the GoF film adaption, which is why he has brown eyes.
> 
> Also, a Marvel ‘No Prize’ for anyone who gets the quote I made in the chapter.
> 
> No promises on when the next chapter will come out but thank you all for your patience.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is a revised version of Chapter 3, the scenes regarding Sirius's death have been omitted. Thank you for your patience.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Harry Potter Franchise or its characters. All characters used are the property of their respective owners.
> 
> Rated M for violence, language, & sexual themes.
> 
> This is a Horcrux free zone.
> 
> Warning: Manipulative Dumbledore & Weasley Bashing (Ron, Molly, & Ginny.)

_Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft, Scotland_

_Boxing Day (December 26, 1994)_

Hermione was greeted by the smiling face of her best friend, as she walked down the stairs into the Gryffindor Common Room the day after the Yule Ball. Hermione flew into Harry’s arms, relishing the safety of his embrace and the tenderness of his touch. Harry held her for a while before pulling back and offering Hermione his hand. “Shall we go down to breakfast?”

“We shall,” Hermione replied with a room brightening smile on her face.

The two walked hand in hand down to the Great Hall, but Harry stopped short, just before they entered. “Are you going to be ok, I mean if Krum walks up and tries to make trouble?”

Hermione nodded, her face resolute. “If he tries to make trouble for us, he’ll have something else in common with Malfoy other than being condescending bigots.”

Harry glanced down at Hermione’s left hand and grinned tugging her into the Great Hall behind him. Harry ignored the sour expressions on Ron, Ginny, Malfoy, and Krum’s faces as the two sat down opposite Neville and Lavender Brown. Harry smiled a bit when he saw that Fleur was once again engaged in spirited conversation with Luna at the Ravenclaw table.

A few minutes later the Owl mail arrived, given it was the day after Christmas the mail was light, but a snowy white Owl drew everyone’s attention as it sailed down too first land at the Ravenclaw table and then the Gryffindor table. Once it had delivered its parcels, she hopped up onto her wizard’s shoulder, fluffing herself proudly. The two witches who had received packages opened them to find a single red rose, Fleur and Hermione exchanged looks before turning their attention to the person who had sent them the roses. Harry smiled and blushed, busying himself with breakfast as Hedwig preened and gently groomed her human, trying to tame his messy black hair.

Hermione sighed, resting her head on the heel of her hand, twirling the rose in her fingers. “Don’t bother Hedwig; I gave up a long time ago.”

Hedwig hooted indignantly pecking at Harry’s hair for a few more moments before seemingly giving up and flying off. Harry continued to ignore everyone around him and refusing to acknowledge the looks he was getting, especially the ones from the Weasley pair. Hermione gently tapped Harry on the hand and made him look up at her. “Why did you give me a rose?”

Harry shrugged. “To thank you for the wonderful night we had.”

“We had one dance…” Hermione retorted, blushing.

“We have two dances, and I enjoyed them,” Harry replied, muttering the last part, just loud enough that it made Hermione blush. “I would have danced with you all night if I could have, you looked beautiful, and I just wanted too.”

Hermione nodded, looking down at her plate. “Thank you, Harry. This was extremely sweet of you.”

The two quickly ate and rushed out of the hall to finish their homework, which had nothing to do with wanting to avoid an awkward conversation about their friendship and what it was turning into. None and you are simply wrong for thinking that, stop thinking it, that is not why. The two repeated like a mantra as they climbed the stairs to the Gryffindor dorm.

* * *

_Library_

Harry smiled over his book as he watched Hermione chew her bottom lip and tap the end of her quill against her mouth as she poured over her Arithmancy text. He understood why Hermione had Madam Pomfrey had her teeth fixed. He’d experienced bullying far too much ever to naysay Hermione’s desire to rid herself of the bucktoothed tag. But to him, everything about Hermione was beautiful. He didn’t care that she had an overbite, he found it a bit sexy if he were honest with himself, not that he’d ever tell Hermione that. At least not yet, not when he didn’t know if they could ever be something more than friends.

He wanted that, he cared about Hermione, more than anyone else he’d ever met, even more than Sirius. Not because he didn’t value having a father figure in his life, but more because he didn’t know Sirius, they’d only ever met once and even then, for less than a couple of hours. But Hermione he’d known for four years, they’d sat at each other’s bedsides when the other was hurt. Hermione stood beside him even when Ron had turned against him, Hermione was the only person he could count on. He hoped she felt the same way.

Hermione glanced up from her work and smiled. “Are you ok, Harry, you look wistful?”

Harry raised an eyebrow, blushing slightly. “Do I, I guess I was just thinking about how much things have changed recently. I was also thinking about…”

Harry paused, glancing down the table to where Ron was now standing. He could feel Ginny lurking around nearby, even if he couldn’t see her. “Can I help you, Ron?”

The Red-Head frowned, rubbing the back of his head. “Uh, y-yeah, so, look, I wanted to say…s-s-I feel bad about how things have been recently, and I want to go back to being friends.”

Ron stood silently for a few seconds before a wad of paper hit him in the side of the head. He bent down and picked it up, hastily adding. “O-oh, and my Mum feels bad about what she said too.”

Hermione rolled her eyes and shook her head, returning to her book as Harry stood up. Ron smiled and walked around the table to stand in front of him, sticking his hand out. “So, are we friends again?”

Harry looked down at Ron’s hand, glanced at Hermione, then returned his gaze to Ron’s face. “Are you and Missus Weasley going to apologise properly?”

Ron faltered, his hand dipping a little. “I-I did, I said I…”

“You said you felt bad, you never said you were sorry, you haven’t apologised once for any of the stuff you did to Hermione for three years. You haven’t given me a proper apology for being a complete git towards me after my name came out of the Goblet. Also, your Mum doesn’t need to apologise to me. I’m not the one she called a whore in front of students in the Great Hall. If you and your Mum did that, I’d think about it, until then please leave Hermione and I alone, we’ve got homework to finish. That goes for you too, Ginny.”

Harry turned to peer through the stacks, he could see Ginny watching, her brown eyes shining eagerly, but they dulled when she caught sight of the annoyed look, he was giving her.

Ron opened his mouth, turning to face Hermione when his face went slack. Harry almost laughed as he waved his hand in Ron’s face. Fleur emerged from the stacks, carrying several books, she placed them on the table and then turned around to face Ron. “You are bothering me, be gone.”

Fleur made a flicking motion with her hand, and Ron scurried away, with Ginny running out of the library after him. Harry chuckled to himself as Fleur sat down beside him, he could feel Hermione looking at them over her book. Harry tried to ignore it, instead turning to Fleur, stealing a glance at the textbook she was pouring over. “I thought you’d be working on the egg?”

Fleur made to speak, but another voice interrupted them. “I see you’re continuing to degrade yourself, Potter. I once had hoped you’d see the light, but you clearly can’t take a hint.”

Harry sighed, continuing to look at Fleur as he responded to Malfoy. “Well, if anyone is an expert on not being able to take a hint, it would be you Malfoy.”

Malfoy glowered at them. “Watch your tone Potter, or one day you’ll find out you’re not able to protect your little harem of whores as well as you think.”

Fleur reached out and grabbed Harry’s hand to stop him from standing up and rounding on Malfoy. Harry took a deep breath, and smiled at Fleur, patting his hand. “You know better than anyone I’m very capable of protecting people I care about.”

Malfoy’s hand reached up to rub a spot just under his jaw. He scowled and stalked away, his bookends, Pansy, and Krum trailing after him. Harry watched them go before returning to his books. As Fleur continued watching the door of the library, Hermione’s eyes burrowed into the space where Fleur and Harry’s hands rested.

“Arry, what did you mean, that you’re very capable of protecting the people you care about?”

Harry glanced at Hermione, who blushed slightly. Harry took another deep breath launching into a brief explanation of how several students, including Hermione, were attacked by a creature that had been released from the Chamber of Secrets. Hermione had worked out the beast was a Basilisk but was attacked before she could tell anyone. At the end of the school year, Ginny Weasley was kidnapped and taken down to the Chamber with only a bloody warning that her bones would lie in the Chamber forever. Harry, Ron, and Gilderoy Lockhart ventured down to the Chamber, but Lockhart attacked them, and Harry got separated.

“When I arrived in the Chamber, I found Ginny lying in a Ritual Circle, Malfoy was preparing a ritual to bind himself with the Basilisk…”

“Was he responsible for attacking the students?” Fleur asked.

Harry shook his head. “Not directly, he had Voldemort’s school diary, it was written in password-protected ink, it had instructions on how to release the Basilisk from the Chamber, but the problem was Malfoy isn’t a parseltongue.”

“Then how did he control it?”

“He didn’t,” Hermione replied. “He had to use a spell that mimicked the sound of a Parseltongue; he was able to release the Basilisk but not control it. The ritual would have made the Basilisk his familiar and allowed him to make it do whatever he wanted.”

“How do you know he wasn’t a Parseltongue?”

Harry took back over, telling the story at this point. “I got into the Chamber just as Malfoy was about to kill Ginny, I tackled him, and we fell to the ground. The blade cut his face and neck, so he called on the Basilisk to kill me; he just screamed at it to kill me after it came out of its hiding space.”

“How did you survive?” Fleur asked, giving Harry a suspicious look.

Harry glanced around, and when he was sure they were alone, he rolled up his sleeve to reveal the scar from where the Basilisk fang had pierced him. “I almost didn’t; I was running for my life when Dumbledore’s phoenix, Fawkes, brought me the Hogwarts Sorting Hat. The Sword of Gryffindor was inside for some reason, and I managed to kill the Basilisk after Fawkes clawed out its eyes. But as it died, it bit me and drove its fang into my arm. I should have died, but Fawkes cried tears into my wound and neutralised the toxin.”

“Why isn’t Malfoy in prison?”

Harry leaned back in his seat and scowled. “Dumbeldore, he convinced the right people that there was some sort of dark magic tied to the diary. He forgave Malfoy and allowed him to return to school after he was treated for the wound, I inflicted… I think he has a scar, but you can’t see it.” Harry explained, looking away and curling his hands into fists. “I was even told to apologise…”

Hermione scooped up Harry’s fist into her hands. “Malfoy knows you can hurt him now…”

Harry’s scowl deepened. “He needs reminding.”

“Just don’t do anything that’s going to get you in trouble with the Headmaster Harry, remember what Daphne said, think like a Slytherin.”

“You mean not like Malfoy?” Harry asked with a lopsided grin.

Hermione blushed and looked away. “Yeah.”

Harry chuckled and got up. “I need to go splash some water on my face, are you two going to be ok?”

Hermione and Fleur held up their wands to show Harry, and he nodded. “I was just checking.”

* * *

Once Harry was gone, Fleur closed her book, and after checking they were alone, she fixed her gaze on Hermione. “May I ask you something?”

Hermione nodded. “Go ahead.”

“How long have you been in love with Arry?”

Hermione’s eyes widened as her cheeks turned scarlet. “I-I-I, I’m n-not, we’re j-just good friends…”

Fleur gave Hermione an incredulous stare. “Friends don’t look at each other the way you and Arry do.”

Hermione frowned, looking away from Fleur. “We’re just friends, very close friends, but just friends.”

“Then you won’t mind if I pursue him.”

Hermione’s head whipped around so fast that her wild and curly hair went flying around her head as she stared at Fleur. “What?!”

Fleur gave Hermione a smug smile. “I plan on asking Arry out to Hogsmeade on the next available weekend; it will be our first date.”

Hermione took a deep, and she hoped calming breath. “W-well you can’t, Harry and I are going together, he asked me to go with him before the Yule Ball. Besides, Harry told me you called him a ‘little boy’ the night his name came out of the Goblet. Wouldn’t you prefer to go with a man over a boy?”

Fleur snorted a laugh. “All the _men_ in this castle are boys, except Arry, he is strong and kind and enormously powerful magically. These things draw me to him, besides, you said you two were just friends, surely friends can put plans on hold when one of them has a romantic date planned.”

Hermione’s book snapped shut as she rose from her seat. “Harry asked me first, so he’ll go with me, and that’s that.”

“I see, is that how Arry feels?”

“How I feel about what?” Harry asked as he returned to the table, Fleur and Hermione turned their gazes on him, forcing Harry to shrink back in trepidation. “That’s ok; you don’t have to answer. I’m good.”

Hermione huffed in anger, collecting hers and Harry’s bags, grabbing him by the wrist and dragging him away. Fleur watched them go with a self-satisfied smirk on her lips. She’d confirmed what she wanted to know, but stealing Harry away from Hermione would be a trifle, Hermione was just a girl after all, what was that when compared to the beauty and grace of a Veela?

It was a full three corridors before Hermione came to a stop, with Harry in tow. As Hermione stood collecting her thoughts, Harry plucked their bags out of her grip and slung them over his shoulder. “Are you ok?”

Hermione shook her head, she walked towards Harry and buried her face in his chest, wrapping her arms around him. “We’re still going to go to Hogsmeade together, right?”

Harry blinked in confusion, gently stroking Hermione’s hair. “Of course, why did you make other plans?”

Hermione shook her head, furiously. “N-no, I just wanted to be sure you’re ok going with me, even if someone else asked you to go with them instead. Someone prettier than me.”

Harry leaned down and brushed his lips against Hermione’s head. “Well that’s just silly, there’s no one in this castle prettier than you, Hermione. Which means no one prettier than you are going to ask me out, and it wouldn’t matter if they were pretty or not besides. I’ve already asked you to go with me, and that’s what I’m going to do.”

Hermione rolled her eyes. “You’re a goof; there are plenty of girls in this castle that are prettier than me.”

“Not to my eyes.”

Hermione huffed, stepping back from Harry so she could look into his emerald eyes. “So, what do you see when you look at me, Harry?”

Harry gave Hermione that lopsided grin that made her heart do backflips. “I see my beautiful best friend; she has kind eyes that shine with intelligence and wild curly hair that sparks with life.”

“That’s it, my eyes and hair?”

Harry rubbed the back of his head and looked away bashfully. “W-well, I-I have other thoughts t-too, but I don’t want to say that out loud, it’s embarrassing.”

Hermione’s cheeks once again lit up bright red as she looked anywhere but Harry. “I-I think we should go back to the dorms, i-it’s almost dinner time, we don’t want to miss it.”

“Y-yeah, if we don’t get there early, Weasley will eat all the food.”

Hermione gave a nervous laugh, and the two hurriedly walked back to Gryffindor Tower, trying, and failing to think about anything other than the awkward conversation they’d just had. Just before they reached the portrait hole Hermione grabbed Harry by the hand and tugged him back towards her; the two continued to avoid looking at each other as Hermione spoke. “Do you think the Headmaster was right, that the diary had dark magic in it?”

Harry shrugged. “I don’t know, I don’t think so, because if that was the case how do you explain Malfoy being a completely bigoted jerk every other year, we’ve been at Hogwarts with him?”

Hermione nodded, looking down at the ground. “Well, even if the diary wasn’t full of Dark Magic, Voldemort did something to himself that caused him to come back during our first year and possess Professor Quirrell…”

“I know, and when I k… when Quirrell died the thing Voldemort turned into didn’t die with him, so he’s still out there.”

Hermione nodded. “You’ve beaten him twice now, Harry, you can do it again.”

Harry smiled at her. “I’m glad you have so much faith in me.”

“Always.”

* * *

_January 4, 1995_

Harry sighed to himself as he walked down a corridor towards the Gryffindor Dorm, he’d just finished his Divinations class, and it had him once again questioning why he’d chosen to take it. He wholly agreed with Professor McGonagall that Divination was a woolly subject and he didn’t have the gift, so it was just two hours of his life wasted every Monday. When he felt a tap on his shoulder, his fingers immediately gripped his wand, but he relaxed as he turned around to find Fleur standing in front of him.

“Ello, Arry.”

A bright smile spread across Harry’s face. “Hello Fleur, what are you doing in the Castle?”

“I was looking for you,” Fleur replied as she led them into a nearby classroom. Harry sat on a desk as Fleur stood in front of him. “I have been informed that a few weekends a year, Hogwarts students can visit the village near the castle and that one of those weekends is coming up soon. I would like you to accompany me.”

Harry scratched his face and blushed. “Um, while I’d like to, I’ve already asked Hermione if we can go together.”

“I’m sure Hermione won’t mind if I tag along,” Fleur replied confidently.

Harry’s hand moved from his face to the back of his head as he looked down at his shoes. “Hermione might not mind, but I would… Um, I want this to be our first date…”

“I see,” Fleur replied, her tone now icy.

“I-I’m sure I can find someone else to show you around Hogsmeade…” Harry offered.

Fleur’s cold blue eyes made Harry shrink back a little. “I’m sure, but you’re a fellow Champion, and this tournament is supposed to foster international relations. I would hate to have to report to Madam Maxine that you’re failing to live up to the spirit of the tournament…”

Harry let out a breath through his teeth. “Fine, you can come with us, in the morning at least, I want this to be a date for Hermione and me.”

“Of course, of course, I just need a morning to see to things, and then I can return to the Castle,” Fleur assured him, softening her demeanour instantly. Fleur clapped her hands and smiled at Harry, the smile not quite reaching her eyes. “Now, I did want to ask, have you solved the riddle of the Egg yet?”

Harry shook his head. “Nope, Cedric gave me a hint and told me to use the Prefect’s Bathroom on the fifth floor, but I haven’t had a chance yet.”

“Would you like to work on it together?”

Harry blushed and looked away. “Y-you mean t-take a bath together?”

“Oui,” Fleur replied, giving him a saucy wink.

“I-I’m not sure… I-I was planning on asking H-Hermione to help me…” Harry explained, still refusing to look up into Fleur’s face. As such, he missed the frown that marred her beautiful face.

“I think as fellow competitors in the Tri-Wizard’s Tournament it behoves us to work on it together, as your Headmaster said, this tournament is all about strengthening the ties of international co-operation, isn’t it?”

Harry nodded slowly. “I-I guess, b-but the students from Drumstrung and Beauxbaton’s aren’t supposed to stay in the castle once dinner is finished.”

“Then we’ll simply have to use the bath in the Carriage, I’m sure I can convince Madam Maxine to help,” Fleur replied dismissively.

Harry nodded. “W-well, I guess it’s settled.”

“Oui, I will Owl you with the date and time,” Fleur stated, swiftly giving him a peck on each cheek before sweeping out of the room. Harry took a deep breath, letting himself settle, the thought of taking a bath with Fleur had left him flustered.

Fleur meanwhile strutted away from the classroom, pleased that her plans had worked out so well. Soon she would have her man, regardless of Hermione’s intentions.

* * *

Harry flopped down on the couch beside Hermione once he got back to the Gryffindor Common Room, she gave him an acknowledging glance before returning to her book. “How was Divination?”

“A complete waste of time…” Harry replied.

“I could have told you, and I have several times.”

Harry groaned rubbing his face. “I know… and I should have listened too you…”

“Good life advice,” Hermione responded, teasingly. When Hermione looked up, she frowned. “Are you ok, you look flush?”

Hermione dropped her book into her lap and applied the back of her hand to Harry’s forehead. Harry’s blush deepened as he realised how close they were. “I-I’m fine, I… I just had an encounter with Fleur?”

Hermione pulled back, her eyes darkening with jealousy. “What kind of _encounter_?”

Harry’s eyes widened when he realised how he made it sound. “N-no, n-not an encounter, I mean we had a chat?”

Hermione didn’t seem to like this any better. “About?”

“The egg, she asked me if I’d figured it out yet, and I said I hadn’t so she offered to help me work on it, so we’re going to take a bath and… I’m going to shut up now.”

“That’s a good idea, Harry,” Hermione replied stiffly, snapping her book shut and went to walk upstairs, but Harry caught her by the hand before she got much past the couch. Hermione allowed herself to be dragged away towards an isolated part of the Common Room, even though almost every eye was still watching them, it was difficult to hear the conversation as Harry and Hermione kept their voices to a whisper.

“I’m sorry Hermione, I shouldn’t have said it like that. I didn’t think it would bother you that much.”

“I shouldn’t be bothered by you skinny dipping with a seventeen-year-old Veela?”

Harry’s face went bright red as he looked away from Hermione. “W-we’re not going skinny dipping Hermione; we’re just going to sit in a tub and open the egg.”

Hermione crossed her arms. “Usually, when you get into a bath, you’re naked, were you planning to be naked with Fleur?”

“O-of course not, I’m going to wear my swimming trunks under my robes, I assume… I hope Fleur will be wearing a bathing suit… If you distrust Fleur that much why don’t you come with me?”

Hermione’s face went bright red. “W-what?!”

“Y-yeah, you could come with me and um… chaperone, is that the right word?”

Hermione exhaled and nodded. “Yes, Harry, but are you sure?” She asked, eyeing him suspiciously. “This isn’t just an excuse to see me in a bathing suit… _right_?”

“No,” Harry squeaked out.

Hermione huffed again and turned away from Harry. “Fine, make sure _Fleur_ knows we’re both coming.”

Harry nodded. “Ok, a-and, I didn’t mean to upset you…”

Hermione’s face softened as she turned around to look at Harry. “I know.”

Harry’s face brightened. “So, we’re ok?”

Hermione rolled her eyes, punching Harry in the arm. “You’re such a boy.”

**To Be Continued…**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you’ve enjoyed this revised version of Chapter 3; I appreciate everyone’s feedback. I will try to make this the last time I have to go back and heavily amend a chapter. Also, if you want to review this, you may have to submit a Guest Review, if you’ve already reviewed the retracted version.
> 
> I have, with some consultation, formulated a different plan for Sirius, but I’m not ready to reveal them yet.
> 
> Oh, and I took up another prompt story set for sixth year, this one is purely Hermione/Harry, but it includes some of my usual tropes. That will be published once this is finished, then I’ll go and write the two other stories that were voted on along with this story.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Harry Potter Franchise or its characters. All characters used are the property of their respective owners.
> 
> Rated M for violence, language, & sexual themes.
> 
> This is a Horcrux free zone.
> 
> Note: For the scene below, some events that happen in Goblet of Fire happen out of order. Mostly because I wanted to write about Malfoy being turned into a Ferret.
> 
> Warning: Manipulative Dumbledore & Weasley Bashing (Ron, Molly, & Ginny.)

_Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft_

_January 5, 1995_

Harry and Hermione were walking with Neville and Daphne back from double Defence Against the Dark Arts to the Great Hall for dinner. Today was a practical review lesson of shields and stunners, so the four were all quite tired and sore by the end of it. Halfway to the Great Hall, they were blocked from continuing by Malfoy and his gang, Malfoy was leaning against the door of a classroom with his wand in his hand, sneering at them. “I’m disappointed Greengrass, I expect this of Potter and Longbottom, but I thought your parents taught you better than to associate with filth.

“They did, that’s why I don’t hang around with you,” Daphne retorted.

“You uppity bitch!” Malfoy spat resuming his feet and aiming his wand in Daphne’s direction. Harry and Neville put themselves between Daphne and Malfoy with their wands raised, Daphne and Hermione covered their backs, aiming their wands at Crabbe, Goyle, and Pansy.

A loud bang caused Harry to spin around and aim his wand at Professor Moody, only lowering his wand a few seconds later when he realised who it was. “Relax boy, I wasn’t aiming at you; I was aiming at that.”

Harry turned around and had to bite back a laugh, squirming on the floor was a long white-haired Ferret, in the space where Malfoy used to be. Harry grabbed the Ferret by the scruff of the neck and scooped up Malfoy’s wand and walked over to a shocked Pansy. “I think this belongs to you, make sure you feed and water him and clean out his cage at least once a week.”

* * *

Pansy glared at Harry as he walked away with Hermione, Daphne, and Neville following close behind. All four had their wands drawn until they were out of sight of the Slytherin’s. Once they were in the clear, Neville burst into laughter. “Harry, that was the best.”

“It’s not funny Neville, a Professor shouldn’t be turning students into Ferrets, no matter who they are…” Hermione replied, despite her efforts to stifle a fit of giggles.

“I’m just glad we got out of there without anyone firing off a curse,” Harry commented, turning to Daphne. “Will they make trouble for you?”

“Probably, but I can handle it, if it gets bad, I can write to my father, and he’ll step in. Malfoy might think he’s a Prince in Slytherin, but even Lucius won’t defy my father. The money he would stand to lose if my father stopped supplying his businesses would devastate him. And my sister and I are our father’s whole world.”

“That’s why she gets pampered like a princess…” Neville mumbled, Daphne overheard him and punched Neville in the shoulder softly. “You should follow his example.”

“Yes, dear.”

Daphne rolled her eyes. “You’re insufferable…”

“I thought that was one of my attractive traits…” Neville replied teasingly.

Daphne blushed and looked away. “Maybe…”

Harry smiled watching them, he was happy Neville had found someone like Daphne, she seemed to make him more confident and outgoing. Harry chanced a glance at Hermione who was also smiling and blushing, but she wasn’t looking at Daphne and Neville she was looking at him. Harry smiled back, which made Hermione’s blush grow.

“So, are you going to take me out this weekend, to make up for being insufferable?” Daphne asked sweetly, intertwining her fingers with Neville’s.

Neville smiled brightly. “As my lady wishes.”

Daphne huffed a little. “You’re impossible…”

As the four resumed walking, Harry slipped his hand into Hermione’s. She smiled at him but noticed the serious expression on his face. “What’s wrong?”

“There was something I didn’t tell you last night, Fleur invited herself on our date,” Harry explained.

Hermione’s eyes darkened. “Did she… Why didn’t you tell her…”

“I did, but she pointed out that I’m supposed to be representing the school, and this tournament is supposed to further international relations. She said she’d go to the Headmaster if I didn’t let her come with us. I don’t want the Headmaster sticking his nose in my business any more than he already has…”

Hermione sighed and continued to frown. “Ok, I get it, I’m not happy about it, but I get it.”

“I don’t think you’re any happier about this than she’ll be when I tell her you’ll be with us when I open the egg.”

A small but evil grin spread over Hermione’s face. “Good point.”

* * *

_January 6, 1995_

Harry was studying with Hermione in the Library when he spotted some of the boys around them slacken and begin to drool absently. Harry sighed and shook his head, closing his book, which made Hermione lookup. “What’s up?”

“Fleur’s here,” Harry replied, indicating to the stupefied boys sitting and standing around them.

“You’re going to talk to her?”

Harry nodded and patted Hermione on the shoulder before walking into the stacks. Hermione returned to her studying but a minute or two later, she could feel someone standing on the opposite side of the table. She frowned when she looked up to find Fleur standing in front of her. “Bonjour Miss Granger.”

“Bonjour Miss Delacour.”

“Has Arry told you that the three of us would be going out this weekend?”

Hermione smiled. “Yes, he did, has he told you that the three of us would be deciphering the Egg together?”

Fleur’s smug smiled disappeared, and she looked away. “Yes, he told me via Owl mail… we do not need a chaperone…”

“Well, we don’t need one for our date, but we have one, so turnabout is fair play, as they say.”

“You should give up on Arry; you can’t compete with me, you are just a girl, I am a woman…”

Hermione slammed her book shut and stood up. “I refuse, I won’t let you play with him and then throw him away. He’s too precious to me to let you do that.”

“I am not playing with him!” Fleur replied angrily.

“Then, what are you doing? Why are you treating me like this?!” Hermione demanded.

Fleur scowled and walked around the table and grabbed Hermione by the arm, dragging her away to an isolated corner of the Library and cast a muffling charm on the area around them. Both girls blushed at the proximity, Hermione realising that even though she wasn’t into girls like that, she could easily fall for Fleur herself.

Fleur fixed Hermione with a hard stare. “I am not playing with him; I want him, I desire Arry…”

“Why, what makes Harry so special…?” Hermione asked. ‘Apart from everything…’ She added silently.

“Have you not noticed it, the aura around him, he is the most powerful Wizard in this school. As a Veela, I can feel the pull of his magic, Veela are always drawn to powerful mates who will give them strong children. I cannot ignore my calling any more than I can ignore that you are a threat.”

“You want him because your instincts tell you so, and you feel like I’m trespassing in your territory?” Hermione elaborated to which Fleur nodded.

“It makes me defensive; it’s happened before when I’ve found boys I’ve liked, but never to this degree. Harry is different.”

Hermione almost laughed. “Not for the first time…”

“I will not give up on him,” Fleur stated.

Hermione grinned. “Neither will I.”

“You will lose.”

“We’ll see.”

* * *

Ginny emerged from her last class of the day and split from the rest of her classmates so she could return some books she’d borrowed to the Library. It was also an excellent excuse to get away from their gossiping about the latest developments in the Fleur Delacour, Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, love triangle. It took all her willpower not to scream at them about the injustice of Granger and Delacour, stealing Harry’s attention away from her. Delacour she could understand, Harry was a mere boy, and boys were stupid, at least according to her Mum. Delacour was a creature, capable of bewitching Harry. But Granger was a girl just like she was, granted she was a Muggle-born, so she didn’t have a proper upbringing, Harry was clearly getting a little extra for being her friend. But Ginny was confident that once Delacour was gone all the studying, she’d done of the books her Mum gave her would pay off and she’d have her Wizard.

As Ginny rounded a corner into a deserted corridor near the Library, she paused. In front of her were Vincent Crabbe, Greg Goyle, and Draco Malfoy, Ginny couldn’t sense people like Harry could, but she’d make an educated guess that Pansy Parkinson was lurking around nearby. Immediately Ginny’s wand was in her hand, which she kept at her side for now. She moved to keep walking, but Goyle blocked her way.

Ginny knew Goyle never did anything without Malfoy’s say so, and her eyes drifted over to the blonde. “What?”

Malfoy sneered at her. “No need to be so hostile Weasley, I just wanted to have a quiet chat.”

“About?”

“Your favourite subject, Harry Potter,” Malfoy replied.

Now Ginny raised her wand, backing away from the three boys. “You can’t make me do anything to hurt him!”

Malfoy rolled his eyes. “For Merlin sake, just listen, you want Potter to yourself, we want to punish the uppity Mudblood and the Veela whore. If we work together, we can accomplish both goals.”

“Why do you care about Harry’s love life?”

Malfoy pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration, despite hearing rumours even he was alarmed at the singlemindedness of Weasley’s obsession with Potter. “I don’t care about Potter’s love life, and I do care about precious little Mudblood’s having thoughts about their station. Granger needs to learn her place in our world, and that is serving her betters. If we just happen to ruin her in the process… all the better for you.”

Ginny paled at the implication but nodded anyway; she didn’t hold any particular ill will towards Granger or Delacour. Still, they were interfering in her life’s mission, becoming Missus Harry Potter. “Fine, what do you want me to do?”

Malfoy grinned in a way that made a shudder run down Ginny’s body. “Simple, tomorrow the Mudblood and the Veela whore are going to Hogsmeade with Potter, all you have to do is get him away from them for a few minutes. We’ll take care of the rest.”

Ginny nodded and immediately walked away as fast as she could as soon as she was out of sight of the Slytherin’s she bolted for the nearest bathroom and vomited. As she sat on the floor of the stall, she began to talk herself around. “This is for Harry; he’ll be better off with me than with the Veela and Granger, once they’re gone, he’ll forget all about them and all he’ll think about is me. I’m destined to be his wife, Mum said so, I’ll be Lady Ginny Potter, and I’ll be rich and famous, and I won’t ever have to wear third hand, hand-me-downs ever again. Harry will love me, and only me, forever.”

* * *

_January 7, 1995_

Harry was trying to think of things that weren’t his best friend, because as they stood in the Entrance Hall of Hogwarts, waiting for Fleur to arrive. All Harry could think about was how damn good Hermione looked in a pair of skin-tight jeans. The top half looked great too clad in a periwinkle blue blouse, but she had a heavy leather jacket on over it so he couldn’t quite admire it the way he could admire her legs and ass matched with some weather-appropriate boots. As he tried to look anywhere but Hermione a question struck him. “Aren’t you going to be cold?”

Hermione shook her head. “No, I cast a warming charm on myself before I left the dorm, and I have leggings underneath for extra warmth. You can follow me around all day if you want.”

Harry swallowed, and his head did a wild swivel towards the main doors. “Oh look, there’s Fleur… oh boy…”

The grin Hermione was wearing a moment before from being able to tease Harry, vanished when she laid eyes on Fleur. She had her hair down today instead of tied in a bun as was required by students of Beauxbaton; it gave Fleur’s already beautiful features an extra softness. Combine this with a white blouse that had a hint of cleavage a wool overcoat and an almost identical pair of jeans to Hermione’s; it was clear Fleur was here to win.

Harry cleared his now dry throat. “We should go.”

Harry deciding nowhere was safe to look instead stared straight ahead as each girl hooked an arm and led him down to the carriages. After a short, quiet ride, the three were in Hogsmeade. First, Harry and Hermione showed Fleur the various sights of Hogsmeade, before stopping off at Scrivenshafts for stationary. Harry quickly decided that Zonko’s was off the list of places they’d visit when he caught sight of the glare Hermione was directing at him before the words even formed on his tongue.

Each girl competed to see who could walk in front of Harry the longest, giving him an excellent viewing of their magnificent bums before he caught the glare of the other and looked away. This game was played up and down Hogsmeade, to the amusement of locals and the tittering of many students. Harry already knew that gossip about his debauched trip into Hogsmeade would be making the rounds in the castle before he even returned. It would no doubt morph into him shagging both Fleur and Hermione senseless in the town square by the time it reached the ears of the Deputy Headmistress.

By the time they reached the Three Broomsticks, Fleur and Hermione were competing to see who could press themselves against Harry the hardest. All thoughts of competing on an intellectual level had been abandoned immediately, Fleur and Hermione were fighting an age-old battle for the alpha male, intellect, of which both had a substantial amount of, wasn’t a consideration.

The two finally let go of Harry as they sat down but kept a hold of one hand each. Harry almost laughed to himself as he lifted their hands above the table. “Um, I can’t eat lunch if I’m holding your hands.”

Hermione and Fleur blushed and nodded, finally letting go of him for the first time that day. He looked between them smiling. “I’ve had a nice time today.”

Hermione glanced over at Fleur, who nodded after a moment. “As have we.”

“Ooooh, isn’t this a cosy sight, two Champions at leisure before the upcoming contest, what a scoop!” A voice proclaimed behind them as a camera flash went off in front of them. The three-bit back their initial response as they turned to face Rita Skeeter.

“Can we help you, Miss Skeeter?” Harry asked coolly.

“Oh, don’t mind me, dear, just go about your lunch,” Skeeter replied as she pulled out her quick quote quill.

Harry made to speak but a fifth, familiar voice made itself known. “Skeeter, I keep telling you, don’t harass my customers!” Madam Rosmerta boomed as she approached the table.

“I wasn’t harassing anyone, besides they’re not customers if they haven’t ordered?” Skeeter offered.

“We were about to order when you interrupted us,” Hermione replied.

Madam Rosemerta gazed at Skeeter evenly, the blonde reporter huffed and left in a rush, her cameraman reluctantly following after her, his gaze still fixed on Fleur. After a moment Harry stood up and walked out of the Pub, calling after Skeeter. “What do you want?” She asked shortly.

“You want a quote right, something to titillate your readers, and sell copies of the Daily Prophet?” Harry asked.

Skeeter rolled her eyes. “Of course, I do, you stupid boy, that’s all any reporter wants!”

Harry walked closer to Skeeter so that he could lower his voice. “Then how about we make a deal, leave my friends and me alone....”

Skeeter huffed a laugh. “What do I get out of it?”

“I’ll give you one quote a week for the rest of the tournament, or you can save them all up for an interview at the end of the year. Just you and me, and no quick quote quills.”

“And how do you plan on ensuring I keep my end of the deal?”

“A contract, mediated by Gringotts,” Harry announced, to which Skeeter paled and Harry smiled. “I spent a lot of time trying to figure out how to get out of this tournament Miss Skeeter, but Professor Dumbledore was right. The contract is magically binding, but while I was studying, I learned a lot about how Wizarding Contracts work, and I found out that Goblin contracts are the best. They’re plain and too the point, at least when they’re mediating on behalf of two wizards. I’ll write to Gringotts and see if I can hire someone to negotiate on my behalf. Is that ok with you?”

Skeeter nodded reluctantly. “But I get to keep the film and write a story about today?”

Harry sighed and nodded. “Fine, Miss Granger and I were showing Miss Delacour the sights of Hogsmeade, I have grown to like Miss Delacour since getting to know her, and I hope today will encourage more students from all three schools to become friends.”

Skeeter rolled her eyes again as she finished transcribing Harry’s quote. “I hope our interview will be a bit meatier than that come the end of the year, Potter, that was about a dull as… wallpaper paste?”

Harry nodded. “You’ll come to find out, Miss Skeeter, I’m a pretty dull guy.”

Skeeter looked past him towards the two girls standing in the doorway of the Three Broomsticks and smiled. “I very much doubt that.”

As Harry walked inside, he caught the expressions on both Fleur and Hermione’s faces; they looked positively enamoured with him as they sat back down to eat lunch. Hermione leaned over as they waited for their food. “Harry, you were brilliant.”

“Oui, magnifique,” Fleur added.

Ginny, who had watched the entire situation unfold from a quiet corner of the Pub, bit aggressively into her burger. Once again, she had proof positive that Harry was too good for the two of them, Ginny was the only woman alive that would be suitable for Lord Harry James Potter. She’d cast aside her earlier reservations about helping Malfoy; if he wanted to soil himself with the Veela and Granger that was his business, Ginny would save herself for Harry.

As they got up to leave, Ginny followed, running up to them, she tapped Harry on the shoulder. She smiled demurely as both Fleur and Hermione eyed her suspiciously. “Hello, Ginny.”

“Hi Harry, can I borrow you for a minute…?”

Harry sighed. “Listen, Ginny, we’re…”

“It won’t take long, I promise, it’s just, I wanted to get something muggle for my Dad, but I don’t know anything about Muggles stuff, so I ordered a magazine. I was hoping you could tell me what to avoid.”

“You should probably ask Hermione, she’d know better…” Harry offered before being cut off again.

“I know, but I need a guys opinion, and all my brothers are idiots, please, Harry?” Ginny asked, giving her best put-upon look.

Harry glanced between the girls and shook his head. “Ok, ok, I’ll catch up in a minute.”

Ginny grinned, taking Harry by the hand, and leading him back towards the Three Broomsticks while Hermione and Fleur continued walking towards the outskirts of town. A few moments later, they felt a presence behind them that made them reach for the wands as their way was blocked. “A Mudblood and a whore, Potter continues to scrape the bottom of the barrel,” Malfoy called out as he and Krum walked out to block their way, taunting the pair.

“You’re the one who continues to harass us Malfoy, so wouldn’t that description apply as much to you as it would Harry?” Hermione asked.

Malfoy pointed his wand at Hermione. “I can’t wait to shut your mouth for good Mudblood, you’ve had good luck so far, but it's run out.”

Fleur could see the look in Malfoy’s eyes, it was a look Veela’s were very familiar with. “Levicorpus!” Fleur cried in place of a retort, lifting Malfoy and Krum off their feet and into the air.

“Explliarmus!” Hermione called out, reliving the two of their wands. As she catches them, she sees Crabbe and Goyle pointing their wands at Fleur and pushes the older girl out the way, the cutting curse flies between them, cutting into Hermione’s arm as she falls over.

Meanwhile, earlier, Harry was dragged back towards the Three Broomsticks by Ginny, instead of walking back into the Pub as he expected, Ginny diverted him into the alley between the Pub and Scrivenshafts. Harry shook his head again and stopped at the mouth of the lane. “Ok Ginny, show me the magazine.”

Ginny walked up to Harry and grabbed him by the neck, pulling him into a kiss. It only lasted a few seconds, but Harry had to fight to push her away. Eventually, he was able to tumble back into the street, with his hand pressed against the lip Ginny had bit bloody. “Ginny, what the hell…!”

Harry spun around when he heard Hermione’s cry of anguish; he could see them further down the street, Krum and Malfoy were on the ground, scrambling for their fallen wands. Goyle was also on the ground unconscious while Crabbe, who fired the curse was hanging in mid-air and looked ready to piss himself as an angry Fleur stalked towards him, while Hermione cradled her injured arm.

“That’s enough!” Harry yelled, forcing everyone to stop.

Harry stood, radiating a powerful magical aura as he observed the scene, he quickly zeroed in on Krum and Malfoy who shrank back in fear. “Leave and take them with you.”

Malfoy nodded and grabbed Krum by the arm, pulling the older boy away, Crabbe and Goyle soon followed, allowing Harry to hurry to Hermione’s side. “Are you ok?”

Hermione gave Harry a gentle smile as he lifted her arm to look at the wound. “I’m fine, Harry; it’s just a graze.”

Harry grinned at her. “You’re stealing my material…”

“I prefer to think of it as a homage,” Hermione quipped as Harry and Fleur helped her to her feet and walked her back to the Carriages.

* * *

When they arrived back at the castle, Professor Snape was already waiting for them. His eyes were lit up with a perverse joy that Harry interpreted as meaning Malfoy had already given his version of events to the Headmaster. “Granger, the Headmaster wants to see you immediately.”

Harry took a deep breath and let go of Hermione’s arm so he could stand in front of Snape. “Professor, Hermione is hurt, she needs to see Madam Pomfrey before she talks to the Headmaster.”

Snape’s eyes narrowed as he fixed them on Harry. “This has nothing to do with you, Potter.”

“My friends were attacked, my friend is hurt, it has a lot to do with me,” Harry hissed quietly.

“Maybe if you kept better company, your friends wouldn’t end up hurt,” Snape bit back.

Harry was about to retort when Professor McGonagall entered the Hall. “What is all this?” She asked, looking at each student, in turn, her eyes widened when she spotted the blood dripping from Hermione’s fingers. “Merlin, child, why are you standing there, up to see Madam Pomfrey immediately!”

“The Headmaster is expecting Miss Granger in his office,” Snape protested.

“Then the Headmaster can join us in the Infirmary, Miss Granger is bleeding, and the wellbeing of students takes priority over petty disputes, don’t you agree _Professor_ Snape?”

Snape scowled and turned away. “Of course, Minerva.”

Without saying another word, Snape left, heading for the dungeons as Professor McGonagall shepherded the students up to the Infirmary, which is where the Headmaster, Krum, and Malfoy junior and Senior found them a few minutes later. Three of the four men took the time to let their eyes linger on Fleur before Harry walked between them. “I want the girl expelled, Dumbledore!”

Hermione looked alarmed from her position on the bed; Dumbledore raised his hands placatingly. “Now, now, Lucius, I don’t think we need to go that far.”

“My son was attacked!” Lucius yelled. “He was robbed of his identity, it may not mean much to that Mu…ggles girl, but to a wizard, his wand is his identity.”

Harry caught Fleur’s eye, and the two had to turn away from each other, biting their lips to force themselves not to laugh. Harry took a deep calming breath before speaking, so he wouldn’t laugh mid-sentence. “Professor, may I speak?”

“Of course, Harry, my boy,” Dumbledore replied in his best grandfatherly voice.

“Fleur and Hermione were surrounded and outnumbered, so they took appropriate action, your son and Mister Krum were disarmed but left unharmed. Mister Crabbe, on the other hand, _accidentally_ hurt my friend, so I think there is blame on both sides, I think its best if we forgive and forget,” Harry ventured. “Professor, you’re always teaching us to forgive our fellow man, isn’t this a classic example of your lessons, five students in a misunderstanding?”

Dumbledore jumped in before Malfoy could speak. “You’re quite right, Harry, we all must learn to forgive. I’m sure it was never Miss Granger or Miss Delacour’s intention to harm Misters Krum or Malfoy, as I’m sure it wasn’t their intention to harm the girls. As long as Miss Delacour and Miss Granger apologise, we can forget this ever happened, can’t we?”

Lucius leaned down to whisper in his son’s ear, to which Draco nodded. “I want an apology from both of them!”

“As do I,” Krum echoed.

“That seems reasonable,” Dumbledore agreed.

Hermione and Fleur both looked at Harry, who nodded, keeping his eyes fixed on the Malfoy’s and Krum. Hermione gave a small huff and spoke. “I’m sorry we attacked you.”

“As am I,” Fleur added.

“Well, I think we’ve thoroughly sorted that, if you’d like to return to my office Lucius, you can use my Floo to return to London,” Dumbledore announced clapping his hands to get everyone’s attention.

Harry watched them from the door of the Infirmary until they were out of sight, only then did he return to Hermione’s side as Madam Pomfrey finished healing her wounds. “Please be more careful, Miss Granger, those boys are trouble.”

Hermione nodded. “I will Madam Pomfrey, I promise.”

Pomfrey gave Hermione a measured expression before prescribing her some salve so the wound wouldn’t leave a scar and the instructions on how to apply it. Once that was done the three left the Infirmary. “Malfoy and Krum aren’t done with us; I’d bet it will only get worse from here.”

Hermione nodded. “I know, but I wasn’t going to let him touch us…”

Harry paused mid-step, turning to Hermione. “You did the right thing, and I should have been there with you, I’m…”

Hermione grabbed Harry by the arm and forced him to look at her. “No, you don’t get to say you’re sorry, because you have nothing to apologise for. They would have attacked us, whether you were with us or not. Besides whatever you did make them run away back to the castle to complain, that’s not nothing.”

Fleur nodded in agreement which made Harry smile. “Thanks, I guess.”

When they reached the Entrance Hall, they paused. “Will you be ok walking back to the Beauxbaton Carriage?”

A small smile crossed Fleur’s lips at Hermione’s question. “Oui, I will be fine.”

Fleur bid them farewell and returned to her room as Harry and Hermione returned to the Gryffindor dorm. While Hermione walked upstairs to drop off her now ruined jacket and change into her robes and collect some homework, Harry walked over to the corner of the Common Room where Ginny was sitting. He leaned in so only she could hear him. “Malfoy and Krum tried to hurt Hermione and Fleur in Hogsmeade today, you don’t know anything about that, do you, Ginny?”

Ginny shook her head, vigorously. “I didn’t think so, because we’re friends, not enemies, right?”

Ginny nodded. “Let’s keep it that way.”

* * *

_January 10, 1995_

It had been a few days since the Hogsmeade trip, and the rumours flew around Hogwarts, of course, the one flying around the upper-year male dorms was that Harry’d had a wild orgy with Fleur and Hermione. This rumour wasn’t helped by the front-page photo of Harry, Hermione, and Fleur sitting in the Three Broomsticks holding hands in the Daily Prophet. The article had once again set off Molly Weasley who had sent a follow-up Howler to the original she’d sent before the Yule Ball. Just like the first one, Harry ignored the screaming and continued eating breakfast. Harry was grateful to the Weasley family for taking care of him over the summer between his first and second year at Hogwarts; it was fun to stay over at a friend’s house, as he’d had no friends before Hogwarts. But that didn’t mean he felt any sort of maternal affection for Molly Weasley; he didn’t know her well enough to make that sort of connection.

There was another rumour, this one said to Harry by Susan Bones, whose Aunt was the head of the DMLE, that this article took the place of one Skeeter was planning to run about Hagrid’s parentage. Harry figured his embarrassment was a small price to pay for Hagrid’s piece of mind.

Just after dinner on Tuesday night, Harry and Hermione followed Fleur out into the snow as she led them back to the Beauxbaton Carriage. Harry was sure this wouldn’t stifle any of the rumours about wild orgies among the students. He opined that being a wild sex-fiend was mildly better than being accused of being the Heir of Slytherin, but only just.

The interior of the Beauxbaton Carriage was opulent; Harry wondered how horses, no matter how huge, could lift a Carriage the size of the building that had a marble staircase inside. Harry knew if he asked either girl, he would get a twenty-minute lecture that he’d understand about a third. So, he decided to keep his questions to himself for now. Instead, he silently followed Fleur and watched Hermione, who was making a mental list of all the things she didn’t know for research later. Harry loved that about her, _liked_ Harry liked that about her.

Eventually, they stopped, and Fleur fished a key out of her pocket and led them inside the indoor Olympic sized pool. “Swimming is part of the Beauxbaton curriculum. Therefore, we brought a pool with us to ensure we continue our full schedule even though we’re away from school this year.”

Harry glanced around, once again amazed at the amount of marble and old wood present. A pair of chandeliers hung from the ceiling giving the room a warm glow. Fleur guided them over to a pair of changing rooms and indicated she would wait. A couple of minutes later Harry emerged and stopped, gapping at the pair of swimsuit-clad beauties before him. Both Fleur and Hermione had their hair freely cascading down their back as the swimsuits clung to their lithe bodies. Fleur was more, filled out, than Hermione, but Hermione was still a growing girl, she still had time to match Fleur in the curves.

Harry shoved that thought into a box and turned around to face the pool, and more importantly face away from Fleur and Hermione. “W-we should get started!”

He then felt, something, pressing on his back as Fleur rested her head on his shoulder. “Are you ok, Arry, you look a little, flustered?”

Harry was saved from responding by the scream the egg emitted when Hermione opened it. She shut it again immediately, giving the pair a sheepish grin. “Sorry my bad.”

Fleur scowled and snatched the egg out of Hermione’s hands. “Yes, let’s get started!”

* * *

_February 11, 1995_

It had been just over a month since Harry, Hermione, and Fleur had figured out the clue for the Second Task and the day was finally here. Hermione had helped him research a bunch of spells in the meantime, and with Neville’s help, they determined Gillyweed was Harry’s best option for breathing underwater. But none of that mattered to Harry right now; he was more focused on the fact that he’d not been able to find Hermione since he woke up this morning. She hadn’t been in the dorm all night according to Lavender and Pavarti, and none of the professors would help him.

Harry had a knot in his stomach; the words from the song were coming back to him. Hermione wasn’t a thing, she was a person, but she was undoubtedly the person he would miss most. He barely listened as Dumbledore called out the results of the first task; all he wanted now was to save Hermione. A minute later and Dumbledore let out a cannon blast from his wand and Harry dived into the water, Harry swam and chewed as fast as he could, finally swallowing the disgusting plant. Seconds raced by as the world turned darker around him as he continued his descent.

Eventually, his vision cleared, and he finally noticed he’d grown webbed hands and feet and gills on his throat. Now, with his head clear, he could push on and find Hermione. It took him a few minutes to find the seabed under the acres of kelp. He could see a few Grindylows meandering below the kelp, but they were keeping to themselves, for now.

Harry continued to push on, but something out the corner of his eye made him pause. He could see streaks of light in the distance as if someone were casting. He squinted trying to make out who was fighting, only to realise seconds later that it was Fleur. The Grindylows hadn’t attacked him because they had an easier target, why attack a wizard one on one when a dozen of your mates had a Witch already cornered. He kicked out with his feet and sped along the seafloor as Fleur’s bubblehead charm failed, he could see the beautiful French Veela gasping for air that wasn’t there as she was being pulled under by the Grindylows. After a few stunners left them, unphased Harry fired off a brace of cutting curses that left a bunch of dead Grindylows in its wake. The others, not wanting to anger further the enraged Wizard, scattered, allowing Harry to reach Fleur, who had stopped struggling moments earlier.

Harry cradled Fleur’s body in his arms, weighing the chances of reaching the surface before she died. He decided it wasn’t worth the risk pressing his lips against hers, breathing in through his gills and out through his mouth and into hers. Their bodies glowed as he breathed life back into her body, but by the time Fleur’s eyes snapped open, the glow was gone, and Harry had been too distracted to notice.

Fleur firmly kissed Harry on both cheeks before reapplying the bubblehead charm on herself. She then indicated that they should swim down together, to which Harry nodded. Fleur turned to resume swimming when she was shoved into the kelp, when she looked up she saw Harry wrestling with a half man half shark creature that had its large razor-like teeth sunk into Harry’s arm.

The stunners Fleur slung at the creature seemed to bounce off his hardened skin as she shook Harry like a rag doll, all the while Harry screamed in agony. Finally, Fleur aimed a cutting curse at the creature’s leg, cutting him open at the thigh, the beast tore its gaze away from Harry and focused on Fleur, Harry’s severed arm hanging out of his mouth. Fleur pointed her wand at Krum, having figured out who it was, raising her aim from his thigh to a point just below his abdomen.

Krum got the hint and spat Harry’s limb out into the kelp and swam away. Harry meanwhile was floating limply in the water, cradling the stump where his arm had been. Fleur discarded her plans to rescue her sister, for now, instead of wrapping her arms around Harry and swimming them back the surface.

_“Oh! It seems our first competitor… oh my… Madam Pomfrey! Your services are required!”_ Bagman called out from his position on the stage, as shouts and screams of distress echoed throughout the lakeside arena as Fleur dragged a semi-conscious Harry Potter out of the lake. Fleur sat him down on the bank as Madam Pomfrey and Dumbledore approached. Fleur turned to go back for her sister when Harry caught Fleur by the hand. “Save Hermione…”

“Arry, I…” Fleur began.

“Krum’s still down there, please, I love her…” Harry begged.

Fleur once again turned to re-enter the lake when she was called back once again, this time by Dumbledore. “Miss Delacour, Miss Granger, is not your hostage; if you interfere with another competitor’s hostage, you may face disqualification from the tournament.”

Fleur fixed the older man with a glare. “Oui, Headmaster.”

**To Be Continued…**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story makes me feel old… I turned 10 in 1995… It was also the last year my hometown hosted an F1 race, bloody Victorians…
> 
> Thank you all for your patience with my erratic posting schedule, I can’t promise it’ll get any better from here, but I will finish this. Oh and I’ve been plotting out what happens from here, and this is turning into a longer story than I initially anticipated, I thought this would be about the same length as Dangerous, but I think it’ll shake out to about 15-20 chapters.
> 
> I hope to give everything a reason for happening and that the plot makes sense. I’m sure that’s the hope of every writer (at least I think it is…), but I’ve just fallen on that a couple of times recently. I intend to do better in future.
> 
> Also, my intention isn’t to bash Fleur, as some people have accused me, I think this version of Fleur is more faithful to her portrayal in the books.
> 
> Lastly, if you want, what in my mind is, a real-life analogue for Fleur, look up some images of Natalya Krasavina, she’s, yeah… I’m under her allure, that’s for sure—also, NSFW.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Harry Potter Franchise or its characters. All characters used are the property of their respective owners.
> 
> This story is rated M for violence, language, & sexual themes.
> 
> This story is a Horcrux free zone.
> 
> Warning: Manipulative Dumbledore & Weasley Bashing (Ron, Molly, & Ginny.)

_Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft_

_Black Lake_

_February 11, 1995_

Dumbledore stood on the bank of Black Lake, staring down into the murky water frowning. It had been almost twenty minutes since Delacour had brought Harry up from the depths, missing an arm. Outwardly he projected a calm, collected demeanour, but internally he was fuming, the stupid and horny Quidditch player from Bulgaria was ruining his plans. He was initially quite pleased when he heard that the Granger girl would be his date for the Yule Ball. He’d hoped it would force Harry to see Ginny Weasley in a different light, but then he’d allowed his hormones to overrule his head and asked Delacour. Perhaps, in hindsight, if Harry had gotten to Granger first, he would never have become friends with the magically and politically powerful Veela.

But it had given Dumbledore an opening, at least in his mind, by going to the Ball with the Veela, Harry had allowed Dumbledore the freedom to put Ginny under the lake. He’d also invited Skeeter’s photographer to the task for this reason. The sight of the Boy-Who-Lived carrying a pure-blood princess out of the water in his arms would be a powerful political image; it could help sway the conservative members of the grey coalition to back Dumbledore’s allies in the Wizengamot.

Of course, that plan had been ruined the instant Harry was helped out of the lake, missing an arm. Dumbledore already suspected that the photographer had gotten his picture and was scurrying back to Hogsmeade to deliver the news. As he glanced back towards the stands, Dumbledore sighed inwardly spotted McGonagall accompanied by Amelia Bones.

* * *

Below the surface of the lake, Fleur was powering towards the bottom; she’d snatched the spare Ball of Gillyweed out of a pocket of Harry’s shorts so she would have the advantage once she was underwater. As soon as she’d felt the gills growing on her neck, she’d dispelled the Bubblehead charm and picked up speed. Fleur knew it would be so easy to ignore Harry’s pleas and simply collect her hostage and return to the surface, but something was tugging at her magic, a yearning to see Hermione safe. The logical part of her brain also pointed out that if she left Hermione to the tender mercies of Viktor Krum, Harry would hate her, and she didn’t want that. Fleur quickly realised that Harry wasn’t merely a boy toy that she could play with and throw away, as she’d done to men in the past. Harry stirred something in Fleur that she’d only ever heard talked about by the elders of the enclave, fanciful stories she’d dismissed as nonsense, until now.

As Fleur approached the Mervillage she spotted Cedric Diggory approaching with Cho Chang in his arms, he waved and frantically pointed towards the village. Through the gloom Fleur spotted Krum dragging a limp Hermione away, but not in the direction of the judges. Fleur’s blood turned to ice in her veins, Krum was determined to carry out his threat now that Harry was out of the way. Fleur kicked out her legs to try and catch up; she could feel Cedric trailing behind her. She wanted to wave him off and direct him to the surface, but every second she wasted doing that was a second Krum used to get further away.

Fleur pulled out her wand and cast a cutting curse which sliced Krum’s back open, he wrenched and screamed in pain, almost dropping Hermione in the process. He kept one hand on Hermione’s nightgown as he spun around to spot the person responsible. When he realised it was Fleur, he dropped Hermione and swam full speed at the Veela, determined to punish the woman who had gotten in the way of him killing Harry Potter.

While Fleur dodged and weaved around the angry shark man, Cedric collected Hermione and swam back towards the Mervillage with the two girls under his arms. As he did Fleur ducked Krum and descended into the kelp, waiting until his back was turned, she sprinted up behind him and shot off a stunner in the direction of the floor of the lake.

Krum spun around and fired off several curses in Fleur’s direction, but when he tried to take off after her, he felt a sharp pain in his back. The stunner Fleur had fired had stirred the local Grindylow; they hadn’t seen Fleur floating behind Krum, they’d only seen the bright light of the spell. Even then they wouldn’t have cared; all Wizards were the enemy.

Fleur swam back to the Mervillage and quickly freed Gabrielle, she took a glance back to see who the last hostage was as she started swimming to the surface with Hermione and Gabrielle under her arms, accompanied by Cedric. She frowned when she realised it was the girl who had interrupted her Hogsmeade date with Harry, the redhead. Fleur was slightly baffled as to who was supposed to save her if she was saving her sister, Cedric was saving Cho and Harry was supposed to save Hermione. Fleur decided not to give it any further thought as they approached the surface, just in time for the Gillyweed to expire.

As they broke the surface of the lake, Hermione, Gabrielle, and Cho finally woke up, several Professors rushed forward wrapping the five in warm blankets and directing them towards the medical tent. Fleur shook off the assistance as soon as they were inside. Instead, she rushed over to Harry’s bed, a stifled scream followed behind her as Hermione also rushed over to the raven-haired boy’s bed. “What happened!”

“Arry was right, Krum wasn’t done with us, Arry saved me from the Grindylow’s, but as a price, he lost an arm…” Fleur explained, pulling back the blanket a little to let Hermione see the stump where Harry’s arm had been, now wrapped in a bandage.

“Why did you save me?” Hermione asked as Dumbledore approached.

“I would like to know that as well, Miss Delacour, Miss Granger was not your hostage.”

Fleur’s eyes narrowed as she looked up at the elderly man. “I do not answer to you Headmaster, Arry asked me to save Hermione, and I was not going to let him down.”

“But Miss Delacour, Miss Granger wasn’t Mister Potter’s hostage, Miss Granger was Mister Krum’s hostage.”

“What?!” The two girls shouted.

“What idiot decided that?!” Hermione asked angrily.

Dumbledore frowned as he felt the amused stares of Professor McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey on him. “That would be me, Miss Granger.”

“Oh…” Hermione replied, biting her bottom lip.

“Headmaster, Hermione wasn’t safe with Krum, when I reached Cho, I could see Krum approaching and instead of collecting her and bringing her back to the surface he took off in another direction. I believe he planned to harm her.” Cedric explained.

“As do I,” Fleur added.

Dumbledore sighed and removed his glasses, cleaning them on his robes before putting them back on. “I am inclined to agree, but there will be consequences for your actions, as well as his.”

“What sort of…” Fleur paused when she heard a commotion outside.

“This is an outrage! We are guests in your country!” Karakoff screamed outside the tent.

Hermione, Fleur, Cho, Gabrielle, and Cedric all ran to the mouth of the tent to watch Krum being placed in handcuffs, his body littered with wounds from the Grindylow attack. Amelia Bones watched on as Karakoff continued to scream in her face. “That does not give him the right to attack and maim one of our citizens; this has the full support of both Headmaster Dumbledore, Headmistress Maxime and the Minister. You may, of course, lodge a formal complaint with the ICW, but Mister Krum will be spending tonight in a DMLE cell.”

Bones gave a small wave to her Aurors and they, along with Krum, disappeared in a puff or portkey magic. A fuming Karakoff then approached the Medical tent. “Dumbledore, I demand you have Viktor released!”

Dumbledore maintained a kind smile as he addressed the Drumstrung Headmaster. “Igor, your young charge has got himself into quite a bit of trouble. He viciously attacked one of my students and left him without an arm; I’m afraid I had little choice but to send for the Aurors.”

“ _He_ sent for the Aurors…?” McGonagall muttered indignantly.

“It was a schoolyard tiff…” Karakoff protested.

“Schoolyard tiffs don’t end up with students missing arms, Headmaster Karakoff, and I would remind you that while you are guests of Hogwarts, our laws still apply to you, as they would apply to us if we were guests of your country. Wouldn’t you demand justice if Viktor were attacked?”

“But he was attacked Dumbledore!” Karakoff yelled, pointing an accusing finger at Fleur. “That girl, that _Veela_ attacked him.”

Dumbledore turned to look at Cedric. “Is that true?”

Cedric shook his head. “I saw Krum being attacked by Grindylow, but not Fleur; she merely rescued Hermione.”

“I see, there you have it, Igor, unfortunately, without evidence of an attack I can’t allow you to make baseless accusations against Miss Delacour, is that all?”

“What of the rest of the tournament? If Viktor doesn’t participate, he’ll lose his magic!”

“Sounds fair to me…” Hermione muttered.

“There is plenty of time between now and the Third Task; I’m sure we can reach a suitable compromise in the meantime,” Dumbledore replied, shepherding Karakoff towards the entrance of the tent.

Once Karakoff was gone, Hermione fixed McGonagall, Dumbledore, and Pomfrey with a firm stare. “What about Harry’s arm? Can you fix it?”

Madam Pomfrey looked grim as she approached the bed, she bit back a small smile at the way Hermione’s hands had drifted into his hair and onto his hand, respectively. “We recovered Mister Potter’s arm, but it had been attacked by Grindylow’s, there wasn’t enough left to make re-attaching it worthwhile.”

“So that’s it, Harry’s just going to go through the rest of his life without his left arm?!” Hermione shouted indignantly.

“Miss Granger, control yourself!” McGonagall yelled admonishingly.

Hermione looked down at the bed as tears pricked at the corners of her eyes. “Sorry, Professor…”

“May I say something?” Fleur asked.

“Of course, Miss Delacour,” McGonagall replied.

“My people have much experience with losing limbs, through our history we’ve been attacked and slaughtered by Muggles who feared our avian form. Many Veela would return to the enclave needing their wings regrown, that potion recipe is still current today, although its use is uncommon. I owe Arry my life; he saved me when the Grindylow attacked me. Even in a small way, I would like to repay that debt.”

“This potion was created to treat Veela, would it even be safe for a human to ingest?” Pomfrey asked.

“Humans and Veela are very alike, I don’t see why this potion would hurt Arry, but I will consult with the Elder of my Enclave and my Mother to make sure. Do I have your permission?”

“Yes,” Hermione replied immediately, she then blushed and looked down at the bed when she saw her Professors and Madam Pomfrey looking at her with smiles on their faces.

“I think that would be acceptable Miss Delacour,” Dumbledore finally agreed to allow Fleur to leave and make the arrangements. Meanwhile, Hermione, Pomfrey and Harry were Portkeyed up to the Castle, so Harry, even unconscious, would be spared the spectacle of being paraded while missing an arm.

* * *

Harry awoke to a dull ache in his left arm, and he wasn’t sure why he couldn’t even remember what happened to make his arm hurt. Then it came back to him, the task, saving Fleur and the attack. The last thing he remembered was pleading with Fleur to save Hermione. “Hermione!”

Harry’s eyes snapped open as he tried to get up, only for a pair of hands to press firmly on his shoulders and push him back down. “Harry, it's ok, it's me.”

Harry’s eyes widened but then softened a little. “Hermione, you’re ok.”

Hermione smiled as she let go and sat down beside him. “Of course, I’m ok.”

“I was worried, I thought Krum…” Harry began.

Hermione nodded, grabbing Harry’s right hand. “It’s ok now Harry, Krum’s gone.”

Harry looked up and around, finally realising he was in the Hogwarts Infirmary. “Gone? What… how long have I been unconscious?”

“About twelve hours, it’s just after dinner.”

“Did Fleur save you?” Harry asked timidly.

Hermione nodded. “Krum was trying to… Krum tried to hurt me, but Cedric and Fleur stopped him, Professor Dumbledore had Krum arrested, he’s in a cell in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement office in London, he can’t hurt us anymore Harry.”

Harry finally relaxed looking down his body, and he raised his left shoulder studying the stump where his arm had been, which was now wrapped in a bandage up to the shoulder blade. “You’d think I’d be more freaked out…”

“Madam Pomfrey gave you a calming draft a little while ago, but it’ll be ok Harry, Fleur knows the recipe to a potion that can regrow your arm.”

Harry smiled. “Magic is brilliant.”

Hermione blushed and looked away. “Yeah, it is.”

Harry and Hermione sat for a few minutes, and a house-elf delivered Harry’s dinner, which Hermione helped him with given he only had one arm. Then, after a long session of silence, Harry spoke. “Hermione, did Fleur tell you what I said when I asked her to save you?”

Hermione shook her head, causing Harry to swallow hard, he picked up his glass and took a large pull of water and took a deep breath. “I said, save Hermione, please, I love her.”

Hermione’s face turned a deep shade of red as she turned away. “Y-you mean as a friend…”

Harry smiled, reaching out to gently place his fingers under her chin, turning her to face him. “No, I meant I love my beautiful best friend, the person who means the most to me in the whole world.”

Harry took another deep, shuddering breath. “Hermione, will you be my girlfriend?”

Harry suddenly had the wind knocked out of him by Hermione, who wrapped him in one of her trademark Hermione hugs. “Yes! Yes, I’ll be your girlfriend!” Hermione squealed happily.

* * *

Outside Fleur was standing with a bottle of potion, she rested her back against the wall parallel to the door as she wiped some tears away. She could feel her heart being torn in two, she wanted to hate him, curse the ground he walked on, but Fleur couldn’t, she couldn’t deny him this happiness. Fleur had been warned never to fall in love with a wizard, and they always betray you, her Grandmother said. Fleur tightened her grip around the bottle of potion and walked into the adjoining office where Madam Pomfrey was waiting. “Good evening.”

“Good evening Miss Delacour is that the potion?”

“Oui,” Fleur placed the potion on the desk and uncorked the stopper. “The potion requires a drop of Veela blood, and it mustn’t be added until its almost ready to use. Once I’ve added my blood, it must sit for twelve hours, when the potion turns bright blue it’s ready for Arry to ingest.”

“Will you be here when Mister Potter drinks the potion?”

Fleur looked out into the ward to see Harry and Hermione resting their foreheads against each other, murmuring. Fleur frowned and turned away. “He doesn’t need me, Madam Pomfrey, he will be fine.”

* * *

Madam Pomfrey made to say something but was distracted by a commotion in the other room. The two women looked up and saw that Ginny Weasley had burst in, her blue eyes ablaze with anger. “You were supposed to rescue me!”

Harry gave Ginny a baffled stare as he glanced at Hermione and then returned his gaze to Ginny. “Excuse me?”

“You were supposed to save me, you jerk! Professor Dumbledore promised that you would carry me out of the Black Lake in your arms like a Princess in the books Mum read to me. But you didn’t, you didn’t even have that Veela save me, you made her save Granger instead! Granger wasn’t even your hostage, I was! Why didn’t you save me, Harry!”

Harry fumbled with the covers of his bed, finally wrestling free as Hermione hopped out of the way, allowing him to stand. “I’m sorry Ginny, I was a bit busy bleeding out from having my arm torn off.”

“I don’t care, a real hero would have kept swimming and saved the Princess, you’re no hero!” Ginny bit back staring at the stump.

Harry gave a hollow laugh in response. “You’ve finally said something I agree with, I’m not a hero, I’m just Harry. I don’t know why Professor Dumbledore put you under the lake because you’re certainly not the person I would miss most.”

A loud crack echoed around the Infirmary as Ginny slapped Harry across the face, running out of the room in a flood of tears. Harry sighed as he walked back to the bed, rubbing his face absently. “That was a bit mean, Harry.”

Harry gave Hermione a single shoulder shrug as he sat down. “I know it was, but if it shatters the illusion of the Boy-Who-Lived for her, then it might have been a good thing. I meant it too, and I wouldn’t have saved her…”

“Yes, you would have, you would have saved us both, and Fleur’s sister if you’d been down there, because you are a hero, even if you don’t mean to be. Besides, I thought you were quite dashing the night of the Yule Ball.”

Harry blushed and looked away. “W-well I thought you looked like a princess that night.”

Hermione blushed and looked away, giving the two a moment of silence before the doors of the Infirmary were once again flung open to reveal another Weasley, this time Ron. “Where the fuck do you get off, Potter?!”

“Ronald, language!” Hermione replied admonishingly.

Ron glared at her for a second returning his gaze to Harry, who scrambled out of bed, placing himself between the two. “You couldn’t help yourself, and you had to go snitch to Dumbledore about Krum.”

“You mean because Krum tore my arm off?” Harry asked.

“It’s a competition! People get hurt playing Quidditch all the time!” Ron roared.

“This isn’t Quidditch, Ronald! They weren’t competing against each other for a prize, and they were competing to find out who could complete the task the fastest. Krum had no right to attack Harry, and Professor Dumbledore was right to have Krum taken away to jail.”

“You don’t get it, Krum is more important than your stupid arm! He’s the most important member of the Bulgarian Quidditch Team! You can’t lock him away for hurting Potter.”

Hermione gaped at Ron. “You’re serious! Harry lost an arm!”

“But Bulgaria lost a Seeker, Gryffindor is important, but Krum was the Seeker for a National Team…”

Harry ran forward and grabbed Hermione by the wrist as she stalked forward with her wand in her hand. “Hermione, stop, he’s not worth it,” Harry said to her before turning to Ron. “Leave now.”

Ron’s eyes moved from Hermione back to Harry. “Wise up Potter; my sister isn’t going to wait around forever…”

“Yeah, I’ll keep that in mind…” Harry replied as he watched Ron leave, not letting go of Hermione’s arm until he was gone. Once he was out of sight, Harry slackened against her and Hermione’s eyes widened. “Harry?”

“I’m, uh, not feeling so hot…” He explained as Hermione helped him back to the bed.

“You prat, you’re hurt, you shouldn’t be stressing yourself out like this!” Hermione replied admonishingly.

“I’d be able to rest if I wasn’t so damn popular…”

Hermione rolled her eyes as she arranged Harry’s pillows to give his head, back and shoulder support, stealing pillows from empty beds when the ones on Harry’s weren’t enough. She finally sat down, cradling Harry’s remaining hand in her lap. They sat quietly for a few minutes until Hermione spotted Fleur passing by the door. Hermione excused herself and hurried out after her. “Fleur!”

Fleur stopped and stiffened, turning around slowly, her face softened when she met Hermione’s eyes. “Yes, Miss Granger?”

“I wanted to say thank you for saving Harry, and me, you didn’t have to do that, you could have left Harry to bleed out under the lake and me to… be taken away by Krum.”

“Mister Potter… Arry is… he’s a special person, and I owed him for helping me first. But you shouldn’t thank me for saving you, and I wouldn’t have done it if he hadn’t asked.”

“But you did, and that means I should at least thank you,” Hermione replied, fidgeting, and looking down at the ground between them. “I know we haven’t been on the best of terms, but I would like us to be friends, and I know Harry would like that too… so, can we try, for his sake?”

Hermione looked up into Fleur’s eyes and any hesitation the blonde girl had vanished. The kind brown eyes staring back at her stirred something in Fleur that she hadn’t felt for another woman before. Fleur understood why Harry was so drawn to the brown-haired girl, not only was she beautiful, but she radiated a fierce determination and loyalty to Harry that Fleur couldn’t match, at least not yet.

“I would like that, but I won’t give up on him, I still desire Arry, but I won’t pursue him while you’re together,” Fleur explained.

Hermione smiled and blushed, looking away. “Y-you saw that?”

“Oui, I was coming to deliver the potion to Madam Pomfrey, I heard your conversation. I would never steal a man from another woman, regardless of whatever rumours you might have heard. But if you hurt him…” Fleur said, stepping into Hermione’s personal space as her wand appeared in her hand. “There will be consequences.”

Hermione looked up and smiled, determination radiating in her eyes. “I would never hurt him like that. I love Harry, and I will always love him.”

“As will I,” Fleur replied in a whisper.

“Uh, hi?”

Fleur and Hermione turned to see Harry standing in the doorway of the Infirmary, leaning against the frame for support as sweat poured down his face. Both girls immediately dragged him back to bed and scolded him for overexerting himself. Madam Pomfrey chuckled to herself as she made a cup of tea, confident that for once, Harry Potter would do as he was told, or he would rue the consequences of defying three angry witches.

**To Be Continued…**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’ve had a few people yelling at me in the reviews for not instantly disqualifying Krum, my counter-argument for that is, it was a situation in progress. It wasn’t time yet to make those decisions if they’d just decided that instant, he was disqualified he might have lost his magic and drowned. He should have been at least forced to answer for what he did.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Harry Potter Franchise or its characters. All characters used are the property of their respective owners.
> 
> This story is rated M for violence, language, & sexual themes.
> 
> This story is a Horcrux free zone.
> 
> Warning: Manipulative Dumbledore & Weasley Bashing (Ron, Molly, & Ginny.)

_Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft_

_Infirmary_

_February 12, 1995_

Harry stared down at his new hand; he ran his fingers up his arm and chuckled to himself. “What’s up?” Hermione asked.

“The Basilisk scar is gone,” Harry replied, stretching out his arm to show her.

Hermione smiled and nodded. “That’s awesome; your skin looks so smooth as well.”

Harry blushed as Hermione’s fingers caressed his skin only to snap back when Madam Pomfrey spoke. “So, Mister Potter, how is the arm?”

Harry smiled shyly at Hermione as he turned to Pomfrey. “It's great, and I don’t even notice the difference.”

“You shouldn’t, it should be the same as your old arm, now, I’m sure you’re eager to escape my Infirmary, but I have one last test,” Pomfrey responded, reaching behind her for a small box. “I don’t think I need to explain what to do with this.”

She opened the box to reveal a small golden ball, and it unfurled its fluttering wings and shot out of the box into the air. “I’ve had the Snitch charmed to move in this limited area, but it will be moving just as quickly as if you were riding that damnable broom of yours.”

Harry tried and failed to hide the grin on his face as the Snitch zoomed in front of him. He took a deep breath and waited. Hermione watched his eyes as they darted about, waiting for the moment to strike. She’d never observed him playing Seeker up close before. Usually, she was sitting in the stands, wringing her hands as she desperately hoped he wouldn’t fall off his broom from an absurd height. She wished he would give up the stupid game, but she’d never ask it of him. Harry loved to fly; it gave him a connection to his Father, and the broom was a gift from his Godfather, she wouldn’t hurt him like that.

“Ha!” Harry announced proudly, drawing Hermione out of her musings, he brandished the Snitch proudly, as it struggled to break free of his grip. He held it up to show Madam Pomfrey as she sighed. “Outstanding Mister Potter, it seems your recent experiences have not dulled your prodigious reflexes.”

“That’s good, and it might come in handy… so to speak,” Harry replied.

Hermione shook her head at Harry’s unintended pun as Pomfrey crossed her hands over her apron. “You’re free to go, I’m not sure if you’ve been told, but the final task is scheduled for Wednesday, June 24. I implore you for both our sakes; please be careful.”

Harry shared a solemn glance with Hermione and then returned his gaze to Pomfrey. “I’ll do my best.”

* * *

As Harry and Hermione walked out of the Infirmary, they found Fleur waiting for them; she smiled prettily for Harry as he proudly extended his arm for her to see. “All better.”

“I can see, I’m glad our potion worked for you, Arry,” Fleur replied.

“Me too, I wasn’t keen on walking around for the rest of my life with some magical appendage where my arm used to be. I would prefer not to end up like Professor Moody, if at all possible.”

“As your girlfriend, I would prefer that too,” Hermione replied, giving Fleur a significant look when Harry wasn’t looking.

“Shall we go to breakfast? Luna is eager to see you,” Fleur asked, indicating to the corridor with her hand.

“Sure,” Harry replied with a smile, he blushed when Fleur looped her arm with his, with Hermione on his other side.

As they walked, Hermione noticed the pensive expression on Harry’s face. “Are you ok, Harry?”

Harry shrugged. “I guess I’m just thinking about some things?”

“You can talk to us Harry, either or both of us, we’ll always be here to listen,” Hermione assured him, which drew a smile out of Harry.

“I was just thinking about what I want to do after Hogwarts; I used to think I might want to become an Auror like my Dad and…” Harry paused, not wanting to bring up Sirius in front of Fleur. Hermione sensed this and talked over the awkward silence. “But now?”

“I had a lot of time to think while my arm was growing back last night, I was serious earlier when I said I don’t want to end up like Professor Moody. If that’s the cost of being an Auror…”

Hermione pondered Harry’s words briefly. “I can’t tell you what the right thing to do is Harry, but even just as your friend, I would be happier if you chose a career that didn’t put you in harm's way every day. But you need to decide what will make you happy, if that means being an Auror, I’ll support you, like I always have. You should also consider that Professor Moody is an extreme example of what a career Auror looks like, he was a Dark Wizard hunter, most Aurors who fit that category don’t survive as long as Professor Moody.”

“How likely is it I’d do anything else, even if I said I didn’t want to? I’m the ‘Boy-Who-Lived’ I’m supposed to fell Dark Wizards. If I became an Auror every wannabe, Dark Lord would want to prove themselves by killing me…”

Hermione nodded, distracted by the notion that regardless of whether Harry was an Auror or not, Dark Lord wannabes might track him down anyway. But she didn’t want to add to Harry’s stress so kept those thoughts private.

“Is your future tied to Britain?” Fleur asked, the two younger students looked at her, confused. “If Britain won’t let you live the life you want, maybe you should look elsewhere. Here you will always be tied to the legacy of Voldemort, and there are plenty of other countries that have magical communities where he is a footnote. You could move and be whoever you want.”

* * *

Harry nodded in contemplation as they entered the Great Hall. They’d barely cleared the threshold when a silvery haired blonde bullet shot towards Harry and almost tackled him to the ground, and it was only Fleur and Hermione’s firm grip on his arms that kept him standing. Luna looked up at Harry with a bright smile on her face. “I’m glad you’re whole again, Harry Potter.”

Harry smiled back. “Me too.”

Luna reached out to take Fleur, Harry, and Hermione’s hands in her own and drag them over to the Ravenclaw table when another third-year student walked over. Ginny Weasley stopped in front of Harry and slapped him across the face before running away in a flood of tears. Ron stomped up seconds later and shoved the Daily Prophet into his chest. “Fuck you, Potter.”

Harry shared a bewildered look with Hermione before he unfolded the paper, staring down at the front-page story his eyes widened in shock. “What the fuck…”

“Harry lan…” Hermione began, but her sentence died on her lips as she looked over his shoulder at the newspaper.

_The Boy Who Loved_

_By Rita Skeeter_

The article detailed the results of the second task, going into lurid detail about how Fleur had dragged Harry out of the lake missing an arm and how Krum was now in DMLE custody. But that wasn’t what had Harry swearing at the front page; it was the giant photo of Harry giving Hermione a one-arm embrace in the Infirmary the night before. The details of how Harry had confessed his love for Hermione was also detailed, down to the words used. Fleur skimmed the article and then turned her attention to the students and staff in the hall, there were many jealous glares from girls and guys ages thirteen and up. Professor Snape had a sour expression on his face, and Dumbledore was giving Harry a hard stare, but when he noticed Fleur watching him, he busied himself with his breakfast.

Hermione pulled Harry out of the Great Hall, with Fleur and Luna trailing behind them. Dumbledore frowned as he watched them go, the rift between the Weasley family and Harry was widening, and Dumbledore couldn’t see a way to heal the wound. Dumbledore had faith Tom had something grand in mind for his return, the darkening of Severus’s mark told him that. But now Dumbledore worried it wouldn’t be enough to push Harry back into the waiting arms of the Weasley family, somewhere he could be observed and controlled. He feared he would have to take drastic action to ensure Harry’s loyalty. He needed them both for different reasons, the prophecy couldn’t be fulfilled without Harry, but the girl was replaceable as unappealing as the notion of altering his plans may be. For now, Dumbledore was satisfied to sit back and wait; he was heartened by the fact he still had plenty of time.

* * *

Hermione closed the door of the Great Hall anti-chamber and lent against the small desk as Harry paced, the newspaper still in his hand. “How did she know?”

Hermione shrugged. “She could have an invisibility cloak, it's not a unique item, just expensive to make, she could have floated up to the Infirmary window and spied on us. There are plenty of Muggles methods she could have used as well.”

“There was an overweight old man at the Task yesterday; maybe he works for Rita Skeeter?” Luna offered.

Hermione and Harry shared a glance. “Skeeter’s photographer is an overweight old man.”

Harry nodded and continued pacing. “I’m sure I’m going to receive plenty of fan mail over this…”

“Your favourite,” Hermione quipped.

Harry poked his tongue out at Hermione before sighing and rubbing the back of his head. “I’m hungry, but I don’t feel like going back into the Great Hall for people to whisper and point at me like I’m a sideshow attraction.”

“We could walk down to the kitchen’s, I often have fun chats with the House Elves when I get locked out of the Ravenclaw tower,” Luna explained.

The room stopped as Harry gently approached Luna. “Does this happen a lot?”

“Sometimes, the Nargles are mean and tell the Eagle not to ask me any questions so I can’t get into the Tower. They also take my things…”

Harry’s countenance darkened. “Do any of the Nargles have names?”

“That’s funny Harry Potter as if Nargles would have names… Come on; I’ll take you to see the House Elves.”

Harry let himself be pulled along behind the quirky young Ravenclaw, silently vowing to talk to Cho Chang when he got the opportunity, but only if Cedric was there as well. He didn’t want to think badly of the Ravenclaw girl, but he was very fond of Luna, and he hated bullies.

Luna stopped in front of a portrait of a bowl of fruit and graced them with a bright smile as she turned to tickle the apple. Luna stepped back as the door swung open, and the group walked inside. They found themselves confronted by almost two dozen House Elves, busily preparing breakfast for the students in the Great Hall above. Harry could feel Hermione radiating anger beside him; he reached out and grabbed her hand. She turned to look at him, her brown eyes alight with righteous indignation. “We’ll help them, I promise, just not now.”

“When Harry?” Hermione hissed.

“When wizards start taking us seriously.”

Hermione scoffed. “Wizards will never take me seriously, I’m just a silly Muggles girl, who should know her place.”

Harry reached out and caressed her cheek. “Your place is by my side, fighting to make things better if they dismiss us, they’ll be in for a rude shock.”

Hermione smiled and blushed, squeezing Harry’s hand. “When did you start being such a sweet talker?”

Harry blushed and looked away, scratching the side of his face. “W-well, I have a beautiful genius for a girlfriend, I have to step up and make sure I’m worth putting up with.”

Hermione rolled her eyes, leaning into kiss Harry on the cheek. “You’re always worth it.”

“Even when I acted like a git about the Firebolt?”

“You’re almost always worth it,” Hermione replied with a wink.

“You minx…” He countered.

Hermione was about to retort when she was interrupted by a high-pitched squeal. Harry looked down to find a familiar House Elf wrapped around his leg. “Great Master Harry Potter is here; Great Master Harry Potter lowers himself to visit lowly Dobby in the Hoggywarty kitchens! Great Master Harry Potter is the bestest Master!”

Harry pried Dobby off his leg and put the excitable House Elf back on his feet. “I’m sorry Dobby, I didn’t know you were working at Hogwarts. I came down to eat breakfast. If I’d known you were here, I would have come to visit you. And I’m not lowering myself to visit you, and you’re my friend, I like seeing you.”

“Great Master Harry Potter is the bestest Master; Dobby will get Great Master Harry Potter, his Miss Mioney, his Miss Flower and Miss Lulu breakfast!”

Harry looked over at Hermione, Fleur, and Luna, and shrugged. “He’s lovably crazy…”

“Except when he charms a Bludger to try and kill you…” Hermione muttered.

“It wasn’t deliberate…”

The four sat down to eat, but Harry didn’t have an appetite, Hermione glanced at him, looking slightly worried. “Harry, what’s wrong?”

“I’m thinking about the third task, as badly as I’ve been hurt so far, I’m worried they’re going to make things so much worse for us.”

“I agree, it is the final task of the tournament, we should be as prepared as possible,” Fleur added.

Hermione chewed her bottom lip, in a way that was very distracting for Fleur and Harry. “We could commandeer a classroom to practice Spells. We could make a list of all the spells we could practically learn between now and the third task.”

Harry nodded. “Did they say what the third task is?”

Fleur shook her head. “All Dumbledore said was is that we’ll be informed at a later date.”

Harry nodded again. “Are you sure you want to study with us, won’t that slow you down?”

“Non, practising Spells I’ve already learnt is a good way to keep them fresh in my mind, my studies would not be hampered by helping you…” Fleur paused, her eyes filtering to Hermione for a beat. “Both of you.”

“I guess we just need a place to train,” Harry offered.

At that moment, Dobby popped in, standing in front of Harry. “Does Great Master Harry Potter need a place to train for the Tri-Whizzy?”

“Do you know a place?” Harry asked.

“Dobby does, Hoggywarty House Elves call it the Come and Go Room, it be on the seventh floor, there be a picture of dancing trolls on the other wall. Dobby be showing you, after breakfast.”

Dobby popped away, and Harry laughed. “I guess that’s us told.”

* * *

Viktor Krum sat in his DMLE cell, glaring at the Auror who sat in the corridor, watching him. He was under twenty-four-hour watch by order of Madam Bones, who approached the cell with a sour expression on her face. “Are you here to release me?” Krum asked.

“You will not leave this cell a free man Mister Krum, you’ve angered a great many powerful people, they are invested in seeing you punished for your attack on Harry Potter,” Bones explained.

“I was competing in the Tri-Wizard’s tournament, that muggle-lover shouldn’t have even been in the tournament in the first place.”

“On that point, I agree, he should not have been forced to compete, but I was informed too late to stop it from happening,” Bones took a breath to calm herself before continuing. “I am here to tell you that we’ve reached an agreement on how to proceed with your case. You will be held here until the Third Task of the Tri-Wizard’s Tournament. On the night of the Twenty-Sixth of June, you will be escorted from here to Hogwarts; an Auror will accompany you for into the maze which comprises the final task. You will wait with them at the entrance of the maze until the task is complete, you will then return to this cell to await your trial.”

“Trial for what, I am a Tri-Wizard Tournament competitor, I am a guest in your country, I did nothing wrong!”

“You almost maimed the heir to a Most Noble and Most Ancient House, that carries a substantial penalty under our law. After the third task is complete, you will find, Mister Krum, that our law does apply to you, good day.”

As Bones walked away, Krum was left to stew over his rotten luck. He should have trusted his instincts and avoided the braggart Malfoy, but he’d bought into the foolish boy’s boasting, and now he was trapped in this cell. All that was left for him was revenge.

* * *

_Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft_

_February 13, 1995_

As Harry left his final class of the day, he paused when he spotted Cho and Cedric walking down the corridor together. Hermione, who had emerged behind him, stopped. “Are you ok, Harry?”

He nodded turned around to face her. “I’m fine; I just spotted Cedric and Cho, I need to talk to them, I’ll catch up with you in the Common Room, ok?”

Hermione nodded, kissing Harry on the cheek before joining Neville to walk back to the Gryffindor Tower. Harry ran after the couple, calling out to them when he was sure he wouldn’t have to shout. “Hello Harry, how are you?”

Harry smiled at them. “I’m good, can I speak to both of you, in private?”

The two nodded and stepped into a nearby classroom. Harry let out a breath and turned to face Cho. “Cho, do you know a Third Year Ravenclaw girl named Luna Lovegood?” Cho paused in thought, after second, she nodded, so Harry continued. “Do you know about the bullying?”

Cedric’s eyes narrowed as he rose from the table he’d been sitting. “Harry, what are you implying?”

“Nothing, yet I’m just asking a question,” Harry replied, keeping his eyes on Cho. Cedric noted that his girlfriend hadn’t said anything yet and turned to face her. “Cho?”

Cho doesn’t look at them, instead keeping her eyes downcast towards the floor. “I know about the bullying, she’s a sweet girl, and I know I should defend her…”

“Then why haven’t you?” Harry asked, taking a step towards Cho, Cedric places his hand on Harry’s arm, forcing the younger boy to step back and lower his voice. “Why haven’t you, Cho?”

“Because I’m a coward, I didn’t want the other girls in Ravenclaw to turn their attention on me, and I didn’t want to stick up for the weirdo and be ostracised. I like being popular, and I like having people fawn over me and having a handsome boyfriend. In China, my family is respected and feared because of my Father’s company, so I’m kept at arm’s length by everyone. But here I’m just Cho, and I didn’t want that to change.”

Harry let out a breath and nodded. “Ok.”

“Ok?” Cho asked.

“Yeah, just ok. I can’t say you’re wrong when I wish I could have those things myself. I hate being the ‘Boy-Who-Lived’ I just want to be Harry. That’s why I like Hermione so much, to her I’m just Harry. I can’t tell you how to act, you’re right, Luna is a sweet girl, she’s excellent, she’s a bit odd, but she’s great.”

“Ok Harry, thank you.”

Harry nodded silently and walked out of the room. Cedric tapped him on the shoulder as he exited the classroom. “Harry, thanks for not yelling at Cho, I’ve seen what happens when you think your friends have been wronged.”

Harry rubbed the back of his head. “I wanted too, but that would make me a hypocrite, I just… I don’t know…”

“Yeah, I’ll talk to Cho.”

* * *

Harry entered the Gryffindor Common Room and threw himself heavily onto the couch beside Hermione, who had begun her homework. She glanced at Harry and put down her quill and parchment, cuddling into his side. “Are you ok?”

Harry paused for a beat. “Not really, I talked to Cho and Cedric about Luna, and it was rough.”

“Did you get into an argument?”

“No, Cho just reminded me how if I had a choice to be popular for just being me rather than the Boy-Who-Lived, I might turn a blind eye to what’s happening to Luna too.”

Hermione frowned, drawing circles with her finger on Harry’s chest. “I don’t think you would; you’d do what you always do. Leap to the rescue.”

Harry leaned in and took a calming breath into Hermione’s hair, relishing the smell of her shampoo. “And why do you think that?”

“Because I know you, Harry Potter, you’re a better person than you give yourself credit for,” Hermione replied, Harry, said nothing, instead simply smiling and cuddling with his girlfriend.

* * *

_Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft_

_February 14, 1995_

“You didn’t have to do this,” Hermione commented as Harry presented her with a silver necklace, hanging from the chain were three charms, a stag, a book, and Hermione’s initials. Harry walked behind her and did up the clasp.

“I suppose not, but I wanted too,” Harry replied, resting his hands on her shoulders.

“Where did you get the money for this?”

Harry grinned and winked as he walked around to face her. “Secret,” He replied, in reality, he’d asked Sirius a month ago, at first, he asked how he could get jewellery for Hermione, days later he got a letter back from Gringotts on Sirius’s behalf. The letter explained that they would handle Harry’s request. The Goblins didn’t care that Sirius was on the run from the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, according to Sirius as long as his money was still good there wouldn’t be any problems. He’d planned for Valentine’s day to be the day he confessed his feelings for Hermione; the necklace was just insurance. He knew Hermione wasn’t so vain that extravagant gifts sway her, but he wanted to spoil her, she deserved it.

“So, lover boy, what’s next?” Hermione asked, grinning.

“Dinner,” Harry replied, holding out of his arm for her to loop hers through. Once she had, they began walking. “Um, Harry, this isn’t the way to the Great Hall.”

“We’re not going to the Great Hall; I’ve arranged a private dinner for two in the Come and Go Room.”

Hermione blushed again. “You’re spoiling me.”

“Nothing you don’t deserve,” Harry replied, kissing her on the cheek.

* * *

“That, that, ARGH!” Ginny Weasley exclaimed pacing up and down an empty classroom near Gryffindor Tower. “He’s mine and that, that!”

“Mudblood?” Ron offered.

“Yes, that, but, no, at least not out loud, that’s not the way Mum taught us!” Ginny exclaimed, waving her hands in Ron’s direction. “If Harry heard us talking like that, he’d get angry.”

“Yeah, I know, we have to play nice with Potter, but it pisses me off, I just want my reward, I was promised a big fat bag of money of kissing his ass, I haven’t seen a Knut yet…”

“That’s because you’ve been a stupid, lazy oaf,” Ginny replied, Ron, glared at her but remained silent as she continued. “You’re supposed to be his best friend and keep Granger away, but you had to go spouting off about how he cheated his way into the Tri-Wizard’s Tournament…”

“I apologised, but he didn’t bite, hanging around Granger is rotting his brain…” Ron complained.

“Try harder! Scare that muggles bint off before we lose everything!” Ginny ordered.

“Why bother, Dumbledore will think of something, he always does,” Ron moaned.

Ginny huffed in frustration. “Professor Dumbledore has his plans for my Harry, but Mum says he’ll let me have him first. He’s not going to make him love me; we have to do that on our own.”

“Why don’t we just use a potion to make him love you, that’s how Mum hooked Dad,” Ron asked.

“We can’t do that in the middle of the school; everyone will notice if he dumps Granger and becomes my boyfriend and not everyone will look the other way. Besides with how famous Harry is it’ll probably get reported by Skeeter. Use your brain for once Ron… Merlin are you sure we have the same parents?”

Ron shrugged in response, causing Ginny to let out another groan of frustration. “I’m surrounded by idiots…”

* * *

_February 16, 1995_

_Great Hall_

As Harry ate his breakfast, he felt himself being observed; he looked up to find Luna giving him a penetrating stare. “Is something wrong, Luna?”

“Did you speak to Cho about my Nargles, Harry Potter?”

Harry blushed and ducked his head, Hermione, and Fleur, who sat either side, smiled and watched him as he squirmed under the silvery blue stare. “Maybe… why?”

“We spent last night talking, and when I went to bed I all of my things had been returned to my trunk, including a picture of my Mum…” Luna explained, her voice dropping to a whisper when she said the last part.

Harry smiled as Hermione and Fleur kissed each cheek. “I’m glad.”

As they returned to breakfast, Cedric and Cho walked up to the Gryffindor house table. “Good morning, you four, may we join you for breakfast?”

Harry nodded, indicating to the two seats beside Luna, as he had a mouth full of food, and he wasn’t Ron Weasley. The two smiled and nodded, sitting down beside the blond-haired girl, Cho in the middle and Cedric on the end.

“How is your training for the last task going?” Harry asked once he’d swallowed.

Cedric frowned, pushing his plate away slightly. “Poorly, I would train outside in the grounds, but its too damn cold, and I’m worried about upsetting a Professor by casting dangerous spells inside an abandoned classroom.”

Harry glanced between Fleur and Hermione when he got a consenting nod, he spoke. “Cedric, a friend told me about a place to train a couple of days ago. Fleur, Hermione, and I checked it out, and it's brilliant. If you want, we could all train together for the last task.”

“Wouldn’t that go against the spirit of competition?” Cho asked.

Harry looked up and down the table before leaning forward. “Stuff competition, I just want to make sure we all make it out alive.”

“As your girlfriend, I approve of this plan,” Hermione added.

Cho looked at Cedric for a second and then spoke. “As _your_ girlfriend, I approve of this plan too.”

Cedric gave Cho a brilliant smile. “I see I don’t have room to argue.”

“No, you don’t.”

“After classes then?” Cedric asked, turning back to Harry.

“Sounds good, Cho and Luna are welcome to join us too,” Harry added, getting an approving nod from both.

* * *

_March 4, 1995_

Harry, Hermione, and Fleur were sitting together in the Hogwarts Library, it was Saturday, and the three had gathered after breakfast to study. Once they finished their homework, they’d return to searching for Spells to use in the final task of the tournament. Today Harry and Hermione were sitting side by side, and Fleur was sitting opposite. Harry had noticed that since they’d started dating Hermione had become slightly more possessive of him, she often wore the necklace over her robes as if it were a ward to warn off the rest of the female population of Hogwarts. The only two women it didn’t work on was Ginny Weasley and Fleur.

Harry looked up when he heard a throat being cleared; he saw Ron standing at the end of the table, wringing his hands nervously. “Hello Ron, can I help you?”

“Ah, yeah, um, could we talk, you know, in private?”

Harry frowned, standing up to keep Hermione between him and Ron. He slipped his hands into his robes, keeping one hand on his wand. “No, whatever you have to say you can say it here, in front of Hermione and Fleur. And you can quit hiding in the stacks Ginny; I know you’re there.”

Ginny emerged from the stacks, frowning. “Hello Harry, how did you know?”

“You’ve been here every Saturday we’ve been sitting here studying. You watch us until we’re finished and then leave. You’re not as subtle as you think,” Harry explained, in truth they’d heard from Lavender and Parvati that Ginny was following them. But he didn’t want Ginny to know that.”

“I have homework to do as well…” Ginny muttered, crossing her arms over her chest.

Harry sighed. “We’re swamped, can I help the two of you?”

Ginny elbowed Ron in the ribs, prompting him to speak. “Ah, yeah, so, I’m s… I’m, I’m, I’m sorry, ok, I’m sorry for being a jerk about everything.”

“Ok,” Harry replied, turning around to sit down beside Hermione again.

“Ok?” Ron asked, confused.

“Yeah, you’ve apologised to me, now you just have to apologise to Hermione and have your Mum apologise to Fleur. After that, we might go back to being on friendly terms, but that’s up to how you treat us once you’ve done all those things.” Harry explained.

“B-but I apologised!” Ron spluttered as Ginny pinched the bridge of her nose.

“Yeah you did, but only to me, Hermione and I are a package deal, I’m not going to be friends with someone who calls her names and treats her poorly. We’ve known each other for three years Ron, you’ve never shown any signs of that you’ll become a better person, so I’m not interested in being your friend.”

“You’re such an arrogant prick Potter, and you think you’re so much better than the rest of us just because you’re the Boy-Who-Lived. That’s the only reason these birds hang off your every word, and if I were famous like you, I’d have them lining up! You’re nothing special; you’re just a tosser.”

Ron stormed off in a strop with Ginny chasing after him. Harry returned his gaze to the girls and shrugged. “If it means I can have my parents back, he can have the fame…”

Fleur reached across the table and took Harry’s hand in hers. “No amount of fame is worth that, we’re here because you’re Harry.”

He smiled, squeezing her hand. “Thank you, Fleur.”

* * *

_April 16, 1995_

_Come and Go Room_

Harry flopped down on the chair that had just appeared letting his limbs go limp, he groaned loudly. “I can’t go on… Cedric, you can win, I don’t care anymore…”

Cedric was sitting against the wall opposite Harry, with Cho snuggled into his side, he lowered the water bottle he’d just been able to take a drink of from his lips. “Did you ever care about winning?”

“Not really… I just want to get out alive, but I’m exhausted, Hermione you’re a slave driver.”

“I’m doing my best,” Hermione replied as she and Luna poured over the books the room had provided. While Harry, Cedric, Fleur, and Cho trained, the two girls would add spells to their ever-increasing list. Harry was beginning to curse at how helpful the room was being.

“Arry, I’m hurt, you don’t want me to win?” Fleur asked, placing her hand on her chest dramatically.

Harry reached out and took her hand, smiling up at her. “Of course, I’d be happy to see you win, but us Hogwarts boys have to stick together.”

Fleur snapped her hand away, pouting. “Arry, you’re so mean, you’re not the man I thought you were.”

“Fleur…” Harry whined as she walked away, swaying her hips enticingly. Hermione watched them through narrowed eyes. They’d been playing this flirty game for weeks, she knew Harry would never be disloyal to her, he’d chosen her, but Fleur had made it clear she wouldn’t give up on him. Hermione knew she was only playing, but it still made her uneasy. All of her childhood insecurities were galvanised in the interaction between Harry and Fleur.

Cedric sighed, dropping his water bottled back into his bag and helped Cho to her feet. “As fun as this is to watch, I have to go back and change for dinner. Luna, would you like to walk with us?”

Luna nodded and packed away her things. “See you at dinner.”

Cedric, Fleur and Cho followed a skipping Luna out of the room as a pair of change rooms appeared, Harry raised an eyebrow. “I feel like they did that deliberately.”

“Uh-huh,” Hermione agreed, she walked over and wrapped her boyfriend in a hug. “You stink Harry…”

“I know, sorry…”

“It’s ok, I like hugging you, even if you smell a bit,” Hermione replied.

“You know you don’t have anything to worry about, right?”

Hermione hesitantly looked up into Harry’s beautiful emerald eyes. “W-what do you mean?”

Harry smiled, gently brushing her wild bushy brown hair out of her face. “I see you watching Fleur and me, I won’t leave you for her. You’re the one I love.”

Hermione lowered her head, burying it in his chest. “But she’s so much more beautiful than me. I know you find her attractive, Harry. I can see it.”

“I know you can, and I won’t deny I find her attractive, but you’re the one I love, there are plenty of pretty girls in the world, but I have the one I want.”

“You think I’m pretty, Harry?” Hermione asked.

“I think you’re beautiful,” Harry replied, kissing her on the lips.

Hermione blushed, pushing him away gently. “Go change, you goof…”

Harry grinned as he walked away and into the change room, Hermione shook her head, wrapping her arms around herself as she leaned against the wall opposite. A hint of a smile found its way to her face, Harry’s words had filled her with a gooey warmth as she’d just drunk a bottle of butterbeer on a cold day in Hogsmeade. She heard footsteps and looked up but immediately blushed and looked away. “Harry! Put a shirt on!”

“I think you should see this first, Hermione,” Harry replied.

Hermione huffed and turned to look at Harry, and she was thankful that he was wearing trousers at least. He was holding his shirt in his hands, and he had his back to her. “What am I looking at, Harry?”

Harry took a deep breath and looked down at the floor. “I had scars on my back, my Uncle used to whip me with his belt if I did something, he considered… freakish, or if I outshone Dudley in some way…”

“Oh, Harry…” Hermione whispered, walking over to him and taking his hand. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I don’t want pity, Hermione…”

“I’m not offering pity, I just want to help the boy I love,” Hermione replied.

Harry nodded; he tried and failed to hide the tears that were forming at the corners of his eyes. “I never… no one ever wanted to help me. They always believed my relatives; I was always a delinquent; I was always more trouble than I was worth. You’re the first person who cared… I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

Hermione wrapped her arms around him, blushing slightly when her hands and face touched his bare skin. He was warm, and his skin felt soft to the touch. “If it weren’t for you, I would either be dead, or I would have left school at Christmas of our First Year. I wouldn’t have been allowed to remember the Magical World, and I wouldn’t have been allowed to remember you.”

Harry leaned down and kissed Hermione on the head. “Taking on that Troll was the best decision of my life.”

Hermione grinned up at him. “Mine too.”

Harry chuckled as Hermione let go, she pushed him lightly on the shoulder so she could see his back. She ran her fingers over his skin, making him shiver. “Hermione, that tickles.”

“Sorry, but Harry, I don’t see any scars.”

Harry turned around and slipped his t-shirt over his head. “I know, that’s my point.”

“Oh,” Hermione nodded, biting her lip in thought. “Do you think it has something to do with Fleur’s potion?”

Harry stuck out his lower lip, considering Hermione’s suggestion. “Maybe, I suppose she’d be the best person to ask. If she’s forgiven me for picking Cedric over her earlier.”

Hermione rolled her eyes. “You’re such a prat…”

* * *

The found Fleur entering the Entrance Hall as they walked down the Grand Staircase. Harry and Hermione ran over, calling out to her. She stopped and turned to greet them, well… “Good evening Hermione.”

“Hi Fleur,” Harry chirped.

“Did you have a nice walk back to Gryffindor Tower, _Hermione,_ ” Fleur asked, with a mischievous grin on her face.

Hermione rolled her eyes. “It was lovely, thank you Fleur, can we speak to you about something, in private?”

Fleur looked between them and nodded. There was a hint of concern in her eyes, she was suddenly worried she’d taken her flirting with Harry too far and Hermione was about to put her foot down. She followed the two over to the Anti-Chamber, Hermione closed the door and cast a silencing spell over the door. “Fleur, have their ever been any cases of the Veela Potion you gave Harry doing anything besides regrowing the detached limb?”

Fleur raised a manicured eyebrow. “How do you mean?”

Hermione turned to Harry. “You should show her.”

Harry nodded and reluctantly hung his robes over the back of a chair, turning around. Hermione lifted his shirt, showing Fleur his bare back. She gave Fleur the story Harry had told her earlier, to save Harry from having to dredge up those memories again.

“His back is clean,” Fleur commented, running her fingers over Harry’s skin, making him shiver again.

“Can you think of a reason why?” Hermione asked.

“Non, to be honest, we weren’t sure if there would be any side effects of giving the potion to a Wizard, we’ve never given it to a non-Veela as far as I know.”

Hermione frowned, she wanted to give Fleur a telling off for giving her Harry untested medicine. Still, she stayed silent, knowing that it was Harry’s only option for regaining his arm without some kind of magical prosthetic. “Ok, thank you Fleur, I guess it’s not a problem, it's getting rid of the visible signs of Harry’s abuse.”

“Why were you left with people who abused you? Why was nothing done?” Fleur demanded.

Harry picked up his robe off the back of the chair and shrugged. “I don’t know; no one ever gave me an answer.”

“What about Dumbledore?” Hermione asked.

“As I said, no one ever gave me an answer,” Harry replied meaningfully.

“Can you go somewhere else?” Fleur chimed in.

“The Headmaster says I have to go back to my relatives every summer, according to him, it’s the safest place for me when I’m not at Hogwarts.”

“Despite all the evidence otherwise…” Hermione muttered. “It’s ridiculous; you spent most of last summer in Diagon Alley, you stayed at the Leaky Cauldron, you were safer there than you were at your relatives. You shouldn’t go back there, Harry; it’s not healthy for you.”

“I agree,” Fleur added.

“Where else would I go?” Harry asked.

“My house,” Both girls answered.

Harry blushed as the girls exchanged glances, their rivalry over Harry renewed as they fought to protect him from well, everyone.

* * *

_June 24, 1995_

_Tri-Wizard’s Tournament Third Task_

Harry, Fleur, and Cedric stood together waiting as Viktor Krum was dragged by his shackles towards them by an Auror. Harry glanced up at the crowd; he could see Hermione, Cho, Luna, Neville, Daphne, and Tracy Davis, all sitting together with the other Hogwarts students. They were about evenly split between people supporting him and people supporting Cedric. Harry didn’t care about that; he just wanted to make it back and hug Hermione when this was over.

Dumbledore stepped forward and cast a Sonorous Spell on his throat. _“Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the Third and Final Task of the Tri-Wizard’s tournament. The goal of our competitors is to reach the centre of the maze before you and retrieve the Tri-Wizard’s Cup!”_

The crowd roared its approval as Hermione leaned over to Cho. “How are we supposed to know what’s going on inside the maze?”

Cho shrugged. “We use our imagination?”

“I’d rather use my imagination for other things…” Hermione muttered, looking down towards Harry, who smiled back at her. Cho giggled. “Things involving Harry Potter?”

Hermione blushed and looked away. “Maybe.”

“It’s ok Hermione, he’s looking quite handsome tonight, not as handsome as my Cedric, but he’s alright,” Cho commented, the two girls looked at each other and giggled.

_“We will take our starting order from the results of the first task as none of our competitors returned within the time limit set for the second task. Tied for first place and thus entering first, Harry Potter of Hogwarts and Viktor Krum of Durmstrung!”_

There was a cheer from the Hogwarts contingent and polite applause from the Durmstrung and Beauxbaton students when Harry’s name was announced. The reaction for Krum was considerably more muted, everyone knew what he’d done, and not even the Durmstrung students wanted to be seen supporting the man who had attacked the Boy-Who-Lived, at least, not in public.

_“In second place, Cedric Diggory of Hogwarts!”_

The crowd cheered again, this time louder, led by the Hufflepuff contingent, even Hermione and Luna cheered, despite supporting Harry. They like the competitors, just wanted everyone to come back safe and whole.

_“Entering last is Miss Fleur Delacour of Beauxbatons!”_

Dumbledore cancelled the charm on his throat and turned to the competitors. “Good luck to you all, please be careful.”

Three of the four competitors nodded and walked to their respective entrance points. Krum, who had stood glaring at Harry as the competitors were announced, was dragged inside by his shackles. They heard Dumbledore let off a Cannon Blast and the task began. Krum and his Auror guard stood near the entrance, staring down into the darkness of the maze. Krum began walking forward, taking a few steps at a time, his Auror shadow following along. “Come on, Krum, back to the entrance.”

Krum kept staring straight ahead; he didn’t want the Auror to see his face as he took another few steps. He was waiting, and after going five more steps, he heard the man begin pursuit. “What are you playing at bo…”

As the Auror reached him, Krum reared back and struck him with his shackles. He knocked the Auror to the ground and leapt on top bashing the man about the head with his clenched fists and shackles, when blood began to spray onto the hedges and Krum’s face he stopped, breathing hard and smiling. He searched the downed Aurors robes and quickly found the key to the shackles, freeing himself and taking the man’s wand. He began walking but stopped, turning around, and aiming his stolen wand. “Avada Kedarva!”

Krum cackled manically and began running deeper into the maze.

* * *

Harry moved cautiously through the maze, he’d yet to see either Cedric or Fleur, and he was concerned, so far, he’d encountered a Boggart and a golden mist that turned things upside down. He was making his way towards the centre of the maze when he heard Fleur scream in agony. Somehow, he could feel her, he could feel her pain, and it was radiating from somewhere close. Harry turned his wand on the hedge in the direction he’d felt Fleur’s pain and blasted through. After cutting through another hedge, he came across the source of the screaming. “KRUM!”

Krum lifted the curse from Fleur and turned to sneer at Harry. “It’s the Mudblood lover, hello Potter.”

Harry’s eyes narrowed in worry. “Whose blood is that?”

Krum snorted a laugh, wiping some of the blood off his face. “Don’t worry, it’s not your precious Veela’s, yet.”

“Leave her alone…” Harry demanded, raising his wand.

“To save her, you’ll have to kill me, Potter, can you do it, do you have the killer instinct,” Krum asked, a crazy look filling his eyes.

“I’ll do what I have to, to save the people I care about,”

“A Mudblood and a Veela, your standards are low, Potter.”

“You hang out with Malfoy; you’re hardly in a position to talk,” Harry bit back.

“Enough, CRUCIO!”

Harry dived out of the way, letting the spell sail passed. “Expelliamus!”

“Protego!” Krum yelled, forming a shield around himself. Harry’s spell slammed into his shield, leaving a crack which caused Krum’s eyes to widen in fear. “AVADA KEDAVRA!”

Harry dove to the ground, and the spell just missed him; Harry rolled onto his back. “REDUCTO!”

“Protego!” Krum called, but it was too late, his shield shattered, and his casting arm was blasted off his body, blood splattered the hedges for a second time, and the remains of his arm landed nearby.

Harry rose to his feet and stalked towards Krum who was backing away, grasping at the stump where his arm used to be. Blood coated his hand and ran down his arm. “Get away! Get away from me!”

Harry stopped, standing beside Fleur, who was curled into a whimpering ball on the ground. “Leave, run away, run now and you’ll get away with your life.”

Krum nodded jerkily and took off towards the other end of the maze; he was about to reach a corner when he was knocked back onto his ass. A Blast-Ended Skrewt rounded the corner and loomed over him; he tried to crawl away towards Harry and Fleur. He turned, pulling at the ground in front of him. “Potter! Please, save!”

Krum screamed as the blazing fire of the Skrewt consumed him. Harry took one step forward but stopped; he simply stood staring at the man who had tried to rape his best friend and had just tortured Fleur. He raised his wand and aimed it at the ground below the Skrewt. “Bombarda!”

The spell exploded beneath the Skrewt sending jagged pieces of rocky ground into the unprotected underside of the beast. It writhed around in pain for a few seconds before curling up in a heap beside the dead body of Krum. Harry waited another thirty seconds or so to make sure the creature was no longer a threat before he sent up red sparks using Fleur’s wand. He cradled her in his arms as Professor McGonagall, and Headmistress Maxime appeared. “Merlin’s beard, what happened?!”

Harry looked up at his head of house. “Krum escaped and tortured Fleur, we duelled, and I defeated him, I, uh, blew his wand arm off… anyway, as he ran away, he ran into one of Hagrid’s Blast-Ended Skrewts… I couldn’t save him.”

“I see, you should continue Mister Potter, we’ll look after Miss Delacour,” McGonagall explained as Maxime gathered Fleur gently in her arms.

Harry nodded and gave Fleur a soft kiss on the back of the hand. “Bonjour, Mademoiselle.”

“Merci, Arry, merci…” Fleur whispered as the two Professors disappeared.

Harry stood in the quiet of the maze for a few seconds before raising his wand spinning around but stopped when he realised it was Cedric who had come running. “Harry! What the happened, I heard Fleur… Bloody hell…” He said as he spotted the heap that used to be Viktor Krum behind Harry.

“That was Krum… Fleur’s out, and it’s just us.”

“Will she be ok?”

Harry nodded. “Eventually… Cedric, I don’t care about the tournament…”

“So, you’ve said,” Cedric commented with a wry grin.

“Yeah, so, I was thinking, let’s do this together, we can take the Cup together, Hogwarts wins, either way, you can keep the prize money. I don’t want it.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive.”

Cedric stuck his hand out, and Harry shook. “Let’s get the hell out of here and go back to our girlfriends.”

* * *

Cedric offered Harry his hand, pulling the younger student to his feet, a couple of meters away, a dead Acromantula laid covering a pair of collapsed hedges. The two were breathing hard, and Harry rested his hands on his knees. “A bloody Acromantula, I think Hagrid is trying to kill us…”

“I don’t disagree…”

The two took several deep breaths and walked over to the pedestal where the Tri-Wizard’sCup was sitting. “Ready?” They asked each other, the two smiled and reached out, their hands hovering near the Cup. “On three,” Cedric announced.

“One.”

“Two.”

“Three.”

They grasped the Cup and felt a familiar pull behind their navels. They both landed in a heap on the ground, with the Cup sat between them. Rising to their feet Harry and Cedric took in their surroundings. “Something is very wrong,” Cedric observed.

Harry nodded, he could hear footsteps approaching, and a cold feeling ran down his spine. _“Kill the spare”_ (A/N: Taken from Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.)

Harry knew that voice, he’d heard it many times in his nightmares, he didn’t have time to shout a warning, so instead, he acted. He shoved Cedric and instead of being hit with a killing curse, the tombstone he’d tumbled over exploded, showering him in stone debris. Pettigrew swore as he cast a stunner in Harry’s direction, Harry didn’t have time to leap out of the way, and he was knocked unconscious.

“Is he dead?” Riddle hissed.

Pettigrew peered over the remains of the tombstone observing the bloody mess the killing curse had made of Cedric Diggory. “Yes, my Lord.”

“Good, then we can begin.”

**To Be Continued…**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can I just say that it was never my plan for Harry to go without an arm, given how I have portrayed Krum so far in this story I felt it was necessary to have him attack Harry under the lake. Otherwise, people would rightly point out that Krum missed an opportunity to take revenge for what Harry did at the Yule Ball.
> 
> Lastly, if you’re going to say that Fleur isn’t getting enough attention, please be patient, there is plenty of story left to be told.
> 
> Let’s talk about the future for a second, these are my plans going forward, after Dance Macabre (5-10 chapters left.) and Where the Wild Roses Grow (10-15 Chapters left. I think.) are finished:
> 
> Honky Tonk Women (Harry/Hermione/Emma Granger) Post War story
> 
> Untitled Sixth Year Story Prompt (Harry/Hermione)
> 
> Ludens Fifth Year Story Prompt (Harry/Hermione/?)
> 
> AU Harry Potter Story (Harry/Hermione/Daphne/Fleur Neville/Susan and more…)
> 
> Yu-Gi-Oh!/Fairy Tail crossover (Yugi/Anzu/Lucy/Mirajane Natsu/Erza)
> 
> Persona 3-4 Crossover (MC/Mitsuru Rise/Yukari)
> 
> I also want to do a couple of self-insert stories one in FT with an OC/Lucy pairing and YGO with an OC/Anzu pairing. But I’ll probably complete them and dump them all at once. Hopefully, you’re excited about what I have to come over the next… months, years? Who knows.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Harry Potter Franchise or its characters. All characters used are the property of their respective owners.
> 
> This story is rated M for violence, language, & sexual themes.
> 
> Special Thanks to Sakubato, who is my Alpha on this story. (They’re not to blame for my early blunders though, they’re all my doing.)
> 
> This story is a Horcrux free zone.
> 
> Warning: Manipulative Dumbledore & Weasley Bashing (Ron, Molly, & Ginny.)
> 
> Note: I had to change the date of the Third Task, the date in the books is the 24th, not the 26th as previously indicated.

_Little Hangleton Church Graveyard_

_24 June 1995_

Tom Riddle, the self-styled Lord Voldemort rose out of the cauldron of his rebirth, he took a moment to run his fingers up his arms and considered his new body. “Robe me.”

Pettigrew scurried over to his Master and draped the robes he’d procured over his Master. Riddle glanced over at his captive but chose to ignore him for the moment instead choosing to focus on himself. Not for the first time, he cursed the name Herpo the Foul, the Greek Wizard who had invited the Horcrux, the method he long thought was the key to his eventual immortality. Instead, his experiments had only led to suffering and weakness, he felt by killing the Potter child in line with the prophecy he would be able to hide from death just a little longer, but that was not what fate intended. His body was destroyed that night, and he was forced into a wrath form, leading an ignominious existence possessing lower creatures and eventually the idiot Quirrell. If it weren’t for Pettigrew, he would have had to suffer many more years as a wrath before finally fading from existence.

Riddle thought using the blood of another Half-blood would return at least a portion of his former strength, but he somehow found himself weaker than before his ‘death’. Riddle immediately dismissed returning to his study of Horcruxes. Instead, he would focus on restoring his former power, he’d experimented with absorbing the magic of other Wizards before, and from Pettigrew’s stories and Crouch’s reports, Harry Potter was certainly powerful enough for him to use over and over as a magical battery. He would have to be punished of course, for daring to defy Lord Voldemort, he would have the Mud blood Whore and the Creature brought to him and make Potter watch as they were raped and murdered. Once he was broken Riddle pondered whether he would give Potter to Bellatrix as a gift, a toy for her to play with.

* * *

Harry groggily lifted his head; he’d watched as his worst nightmare came to pass, Lord Voldemort was once again whole. Worse, Cedric was dead, and it was his fault, he should have just struck out on his own and fought his way to the cup, that way, Cedric would be alive right now. Instead, he’d been a ‘noble idiot’ as Hermione put it and tried to do things the right way.

He could hear Riddle babbling on about something, but he wasn’t paying attention, his entire body hurt, and his throbbing head made it difficult to concentrate. That was until Pettigrew slapped him across the face with his new silver hand. Harry blinked and tried to focus on Riddle. “W-what?”

“I asked you where your parents were now?”

Rage bubbled inside Harry as he glared at Tom Riddle. “They’re dead; YOU KILLED THEM!”

Harry slumped back as Riddle paused as if surprised by his level of defiance. Riddle shook his head and drew his wand. “Wormtail, give me your arm.”

“Yes, Master,” Pettigrew replied, scurrying over as he rolled up his sleeve. Riddle once again turned to Harry. “Watch Potter, watch as my true family return to me.”

* * *

Cedric Diggory briefly wondered why he was sore and bleeding as he floated back to consciousness, he’d been having a sweet dream about marrying Cho. He imagined Harry and Hermione being there as his groomsman and bridesmaid respectively, all of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw were there to watch them be married. But then someone’s scream had interrupted the proceedings and he’d woken up. After a few heartbeats, the memories flooded back, the Maze, the Cup and Harry shoving him to the ground. He remembered trying to get up only to have pieces of a broken headstone strike him and knock him unconscious. From his prone position, Cedric looked up, even though blood had sealed his left eye shut, he could still just see everything from where he was lying. There were a group of Death Eaters, in the same garb he’d seen them wearing at the World Cup, huddled in a semi-circle around Harry and an ugly pale man Cedric didn’t recognise until he did.

The blood chilled in Cedric’s veins when he realised this was the man his father had described to him as the evillest man he’d ever seen. The Dark Lord Harry had killed as a baby and the man currently torturing his friend. He could hear Harry’s agonised screams of pain as he withered on the ground before Voldemort lifted the curse and demanded Harry stand.

Cedric knew he had to do something, and he had to protect Harry, he was Harry’s senior, he was a Hogwarts Prefect, it was his job to tend to the younger kids at school. It was his job to protect them even when some of the teachers wouldn’t. Trying to be as stealthy as he could, with a gash in his head and a puncture wound in his arm Cedric crawled over to hide behind the sarcophagus. Peaking out he watched as Harry rose to his and was handed his wand by another man that Cedric didn’t recognise, but for some reason had a shiny silver hand.

Cedric watched as Harry was forced to bow and this gave him his opening. Cedric raised his wand and aimed at Voldemort, and he didn’t have any illusions that this was a good or sane idea. The rational thing to do would be to grab the Cup, which was lying a few feet from the ruined headstone and return to Hogwarts for help, but by then Harry would be dead or captured, and Voldemort and his Death Eaters would be long gone. Cedric knew he’d never forgive himself, and Hermione and Fleur certainly wouldn’t. Besides, he’d promised Harry they’d make it back to hug their girlfriends at the end of this, he could at least ensure Harry made it back to hug Hermione.

Voldemort raised his wand and Cedric took a deep breath and slashed his wand in a downwards motion. “ _Defodio!”_ He hissed.

* * *

Harry was about to cast his disarming charm when he felt a spell rush past him. Voldemort’s blood-red eyes widened as cast a shielding charm which shattered when the spell impacted the wall. Harry immediately switched tactics, immediately thankful to Hermione, Luna, and the Come and Go Room. “ _Confringo!_ ”

Harry didn’t expect anything to happen, and this was Lord Voldemort after all, the evillest and most powerful Dark Lord of all time. He was a fourteen-year-old wizard with a gash on his head and a cut in his arm. But he refused to go down without a fight. However, seconds later, Voldemort exploded, spreading bits of viscera and blood over everyone in attendance.

Harry stood dumbfounded, covered in blood and gore, he’d just killed Voldemort the Darkest of Dark Lords. He felt another spell fly by his head; it knocked a Death Eater off their feet as Harry spun around. “Cedric?”

“Harry! RUN!” Cedric screamed as he let off another brace of curses at the oncoming group of Death Eaters. Harry nodded jerkily running towards Cedric; he let off a Blasting Curse aimed at the ground behind him as he dove over the sarcophagus and landed in a heap on the ground. Once Cedric was sure he was safe, he aimed his wand at the Cup. “Ac…”

Harry snatched at Cedric’s wand arm. “No, we need Pettigrew!”

“Who?”

“The fat, balding guy, we need him, it's important!” Harry yelled as he sent a Diffindo over the grave. He heard a scream of pain and then a yell. “KILL THEM!”

“Harry, we need to get out of here!”

“Please! I’ll explain later, but we need him!” Harry protested, sending another blasting curse over their makeshift wall.

“FINE!” Cedric finally conceded, grabbing Harry by the hand. The two ran from their hiding spot casting as many spells as they could muster. The two were in sync, given their four months of training together, but the Death Eaters were in chaos, some were unconscious, others were missing limbs or had simply disappeared into the night. One of the last was Lucius Malfoy whose mask had been ripped off his head by Harry’s Severing Charm, leaving a nasty, bloody gash along his face. He was running towards them casting as many Killing Curses at them as he could sustain but between Harry and Cedric darting between gravestones and the stream of blood flowing down Malfoy’s face his spells got weaker and weaker as he pursued them.

Harry leapt over the last gravestone and put a headlock on Pettigrew who lay withering on the ground cradling the stump where his hand had been. Cedric looped one of his arms with Harry’s and summoned the cup and seconds later they were gone, leaving carnage in their wake.

Lucius Malfoy collapsed to the ground, glaring at the spot Harry and Cedric had just been as blood rapidly dripped onto the field below. “I’ll kill you, Harry Potter, I’ll kill you and your whore!”

* * *

Hermione had been pacing back and forth in front of Cho and Luna for the last half hour. Her anxiety first spiked when she’d seen the red sparks emerge from the Maze followed by McGonagall and Madame Maxime disappearing. The announcement had further spiked that Fleur was out of the running after being attacked. They didn’t specify what had happened, but it made Hermione worry even more if Fleur had been attacked, she just knew Harry had come to her rescue. A few minutes later the dome had lifted from the Maze, indicating someone had reached the Cup. But no one had yet to appear on the stage set up to welcome the Tri-Wizard’s Champion. Instead, the only thing the crowd had seen was several professors entering the Maze only to return with something on a stretcher covered in bloody blankets. The smell of burnt flesh permeated the area for a while before Dumbledore dispersed it with a spell. When Hermione asked, she was assured that it was neither Harry nor Cedric, which raised the further question of where they had gone.

As Hermione turned to start another stretch of pacing the sound of three people falling in a heap rang out. Hermione spun around and rushed to the stage, stifling a scream when she came across her boyfriend, Cedric Diggory and Peter Pettigrew lying in a bloody heap. Pushing past a group of Professors and Officials, Hermione ran onto the stage and wrapped Harry in a hug. “Oh, Merlin, Harry, what happened?”

Harry’s eyes shone with happiness as he laid his eyes on Hermione once again. He smiled, despite being covered in blood and gore. “I did it, Mione, I got the bastard, I killed Voldemort…” He explained before promptly passing out.

* * *

When Harry woke up, he found himself in the Infirmary, there was a privacy screen drawn around his bed, and Headmaster Dumbledore was sat at the end with a bowl of lemon drops in his lap. “Ah, Harry, my boy, I’m glad to see you’re awake.”

“Hello Headmaster, is Cedric ok?”

Dumbledore nodded. “Aside from a nasty cut on his head and a wound in his arm, he is fine. As are you it seems. Would you care to tell me what you said to Miss Granger before you passed out?”

Harry took a breath and nodded. “I told her I got the bastard; I killed Voldemort.”

Dumbledore frowned, letting the lemon drop he was holding fall back into the bowl. “Are you sure, young Harry?”

“Sir, I cast a Confringo curse at him, and he exploded, I was covered in his blood and bits of his body. Not even Lord Voldemort could survive that. I’m sure he’s dead.”

Dumbledore shook his head mournfully. “That is a dangerous spell Mister Potter, where by chance did you learn it?”

“I found it in a book in the library,” Harry replied, it wasn’t a complete lie, it was in a book, it just wasn’t in the library.

“You shouldn’t have done that Harry, killing isn’t the answer, we must learn to forgive our enemies…” Dumbledore began.

“I can only forgive when someone is repentant for their actions. Tom Riddle was going to go straight back to raping and murdering after he finished killing me. You know he would,” Harry bit back.

“I believe he could have been shown the error of his ways, there was still hope for him,” Dumbledore replied.

Harry shook his head. “It’s too late now; he’s dead.”

Dumbledore sighed and looked down at his bowl of lemon drops. “I’m afraid it might be premature to celebrate Harry, Lord Voldemort has found ways to escape death before, I fear he may have done it again.”

Harry raised an eyebrow. “How do you know that, sir?”

Dumbledore stood and moved to leave. “When you’re old enough I will tell you everything you need to know, for now, you should rest. We will talk more in the morning.”

“Sir, what about Pettigrew?!”

Dumbledore stopped and turned around. “Professor Moody escorted Mister Pettigrew to his office, we had intended to question him, but when we arrived, he was dead. Professor Moody, who has been teaching you all year was a fake. He was drinking Polyjuice potion out of the flask Alastor kept with him at all times.”

“T-then what happens to Sirius?” Harry asked fearfully.

“Thankfully, the fact that Peter kept his form even after he died has convinced the Minister that it was Peter Pettigrew after all, and not as he claimed someone posing as Pettigrew. The Minister has returned to London and will sign an order dismissing the charges in the morning.

Harry’s eyes brightened. “Then, I can go live with Sirius?”

Dumbledore pursed his lips. “We’ll speak more about it in a few days, and we can’t decide anything now until the order is signed Sirius is still a fugitive.”

Harry nodded sadly, looking down at his hands. “Ok.”

“Goodnight, Harry.”

“Goodnight Professor.”

* * *

Harry sighed and dropped back to the bed when he heard the shuffling of the privacy screen from the opposite side to where Dumbledore had left. Fleur slipped inside and graced Harry with a smile, swooping down to give him a peck on each cheek and then a kiss on the lips. “Bonjour, Arry.”

“Bonjour Mademoiselle, I’m glad you’re ok,” Harry replied, gently stroking her face.

“I’m only ok because you saved me. I was so worried after they brought me up here, I could feel your pain, and your fear. They wouldn’t tell me what happened, and it was only after everyone left that Cedric told us,” Fleur explained, sitting beside Harry on the bed.

“If it weren’t for him, I would be dead.”

“From what he told us the same is true for him.”

Harry leaned his head into Fleur’s shoulder, relishing her warmth and taking comfort from it. “I thought Hermione would be here…”

“She would have been, but the Headmaster made her go to bed before you woke up. She was not pleased…”

Harry smiled a little. “I’m not surprised.”

The two sat in silence for a while before Harry spoke again. “Do you think I’m a bad person for not helping Krum?”

“Non, of course not, what would make you think that?”

“Professor Dumbledore says we should forgive our enemies, I like to believe we can only forgive repentant people, but it still plays on my mind. He’s so much older than me, and he knows so much more about the world. I sometimes wonder if I should trust him, even if he is wrong sometimes… I mean, I’m wrong a lot, so why shouldn’t I trust him more?”

“Arry, do you admit your mistakes?”

Harry nodded. “Of course, otherwise I won’t learn from them.”

“Has the Headmaster ever admitted to making a mistake?”

Harry paused, trying to recall all his past interactions with Dumbledore. “No, I suppose not…”

“A wise man admits his faults; a stupid man pretends he doesn’t have any. Professor Dumbledore is to be respected for his accomplishments, but they may have made him blind to his faults. Viktor Krum was a monster, and you showed him mercy when he deserved none, you’re a good man Arry Potter, if Hermione were here, she would say the same. The only person to blame for Viktor Krum’s death is Viktor Krum.”

Harry nodded and snuggled back into Fleur’s side. She smiled and kissed him on the forehead. “Rest now, Arry, I will stay until you fall asleep.” Harry nodded and closed his eyes as Fleur ran her fingers through his hair. Soon Harry was asleep, but by then, so was Fleur.

* * *

_25 June 1995_

It was incredibly early in the morning when Harry woke up; he blushed when he realised that Fleur was still cuddled into his side. He managed to wiggle free and drop his blanket on her as he padded over to the bathroom. Once he was done, he tip-toed over to his bed, or he would have if someone hadn’t spotted him. “Nice sleep Harry?”

Harry blushed when he noticed Cedric watching him from the end of his bed. Cho was asleep on the bed behind him. “Uh, yeah…”

Cedric chuckled as he stood, leading the younger boy away from the two sleeping girls. “I won’t say anything. I just wanted to thank you for what happened in the Graveyard.”

Harry smiled. “Shouldn’t that be my line?”

Cedric stuck his hand out. “Call it even then?”

Harry shook. “Deal.”

Cedric paused, letting go of Harry’s hand. “We shouldn’t have made it out of there alive. You know that, right?”

Harry nodded. “I shouldn’t have been able to kill him; he should have shrugged off our spells like they were nothing, do you think the ritual went wrong?”

Cedric shrugged. “I wish I knew; I didn’t wake up until V-Voldemort started torturing you… I don’t know how he was revived in the first place. I always believed he was dead.”

“I saw him at the end of my First Year at Hogwarts. He was a spirit who attached himself to the back of Professor Quirrell’s head. When Quirrell died he disappeared, I guess that spirit was the thing I killed last night.”

“Could he come back again?” Cedric asked.

Harry shrugged. “Professor Dumbledore seems to think so, but he won’t tell me why.”

Cedric frowned. “I guess that’s a topic for another day.”

Harry nodded and moved to return to bed but stopped. “Cedric, maybe you should take your family and go away for a while. Lucius Malfoy is just as evil as his old Master, he’ll want to hurt you and your family for what we did last night.”

Cedric nodded, absently stroking the hair of his girlfriend. “Thanks for the warning Harry, I’ll keep it in mind.”

* * *

As Cedric climbed back into bed, he felt his girlfriend’s arms wrap around him. “I thought you were asleep.”

“I was, but then my teddy bear decided to get out of bed,” Cho complained.

Cedric chuckled and kissed Cho on the forehead. “Sorry, I had to talk to Harry about something.”

“Is he ok?”

“Mostly, I think we both need some time to process what happened.”

“He’s right though, from what my Father told me Malfoy is evil, you should take Harry up on his advice.”

“And go where though…?” Cedric asked.

Cho blushed as she buried her face in Cedric’s chest. “My family has a house in Shanghai… That's if… I mean…”

Cedric put his fingers under Cho’s chin and lifted her head so she would look at him in the eyes. “You want to know if I’m serious about you?”

Cho nodded, and Cedric leaned in to kiss her on the lips. “Yes.”

Cho squealed quietly in delight, burying her face in Cedric’s chest again. “I’m glad because I’m serious about you. Come stay with us for the summer; I want your family to be safe.”

Cedric leaned down and kissed Cho on the head. “I’ll talk to my folks in a few hours.”

* * *

On the other side of the privacy screen, Harry crawled back into bed, and immediately Fleur’s arms wrapped around him, pulling him close. Harry blushed again; his head was resting against her well-endowed chest. “You disappeared. I was lonely.”

“Sorry, I had to use the bathroom, and then I talked to Cedric.”

“I suppose I can forgive you, and you’re very nice to snuggle with Arry.”

Harry took a deep breath of Fleur’s natural scent. If he’d thought about, he might have realised it was Fleur’s Veela nature that made her smell so good. But he didn’t care at that moment. “Fleur, we shouldn’t be doing this, I’m with Hermione.”

Fleur pouted. “I know you are Arry, but I want to have this even if it’s only for tonight…”

“Fleur I…” Harry stopped as he looked up into Fleur’s eyes. “You’re crying…”

“When Cedric told us what happened, I realised how close I came to losing you. I laid here; I could feel how hurt and scared you were, and then they brought you into the Infirmary. You were curled into a ball, you always look strong in front of people, even when you had your arm ripped off you managed to ask me to save Hermione. But when they brought you in you looked so small and broken… I had to turn away because I was crying. I care about you, Arry, and you were almost…”

Harry pulled Fleur towards him and cradled her in his arms, stroking her hair. “It’s ok now Fleur, and I’m ok, the bastard is dead. I won’t let you go.”

“But that’s only for tonight. Tomorrow you’ll go back to Hermione…”

“Yes, I love Hermione. I’ve committed to her. She’s…” Harry stopped, blushing, Fleur looked up at him, running her fingers down his face, stopping at his lips. “Tell me what you’re feeling Arry, please be honest with me.”

“She’s the one I want to spend my life with, I know I’m only fourteen, but I’ve spent so much time in life-threatening danger. I don’t want to live in denial of what my heart is telling me. I’m sorry Fleur, I…”

Fleur rested her fingers against Harry’s lips, causing him to fall silent. “Please don’t Arry, don’t finish that sentence. Let me live in this moment for a little longer.” Harry nodded against her fingers, and she pulled them away, wrapping her arms around his head and pulling him close. He could feel her tears dripping into his hair, and he hated himself for it.

* * *

Harry had just emerged from the shower, having pulled a shirt on when he found himself almost toppling over into Cedric’s bed. He almost laughed as he steadied himself, resting his hand on Hermione’s head of bushy brown hair. “Hello.”

“Harry, I was so worried, you scared me half to death! And then Cedric told us what happened to you, and I wanted to stay I promise I did but, oooh, the Headmaster was so mean. He made me go to bed, I tried to sneak down here under your invisibility cloak, but Ron Bloody Weasley wouldn’t let me in to get it. I bet he tried to steal it to give to Ginny, but I guess he couldn’t get past the locking charm on your trunk.”

Harry gently lifted Hermione’s head and kissed her on the lips. “Of course, he couldn’t, you’re the one who taught me.”

“I was so scared, you came back, and you were covered in blood and bits of someone… You looked so small; I cried myself to sleep. I couldn’t handle seeing you like that…” Hermione whispered.

“I’m sorry Hermione, I didn’t mean to scare you like that. I fought so hard to get back here, get back to you. I knew I had to protect you so I couldn’t let myself curl up and die.”

Harry watched as Cedric and Cho walked past, Cedric having been given permission to leave the Infirmary while Harry and Hermione were talking. “Back in a minute.”

Hermione watched Harry leave as Fleur approached. “You have a very special boyfriend, Hermione.”

Hermione smiled to herself. “I know,” She replied, turning around. “Fleur, you’ve been crying.”

Fleur hastily wiped her eyes, turning away from Hermione. “Oh, um, yes, well, I’m still suffering the aftereffects of the Cruciatus curse that Viktor Krum cast on me last night.”

Hermione wrapped her arms around herself. “I should be more upset that he’s dead, but I’m not.”

“Non, neither am I,” Fleur replied.

* * *

Harry stopped in the corridor with Cho, Cedric walked a further on to give the two some privacy. “Cho, I wanted to say I’m sorry.”

Cho blinked in confusion. “For what?”

“I don’t know if Cedric told you, but I’m the one who suggested that we take the Cup together, I’m the reason he was almost killed in the graveyard.”

“Harry…”

“I just didn’t want you thinking he’d been reckless for a little fame and glory. It’s my fault he almost died if you’re angry at anyone it should be me.”

“Harry, I’m not angry at anyone, well, ok, I’m angry at the Ministry for putting this stupid tournament on in the first place…” Cho explained, drawing a small grin out of Harry. “But I am not angry at you. You had no way to know the Cup had been sabotaged to send you somewhere other than the platform outside the Maze. The only person to blame is the one who was helping You-Know-Who, and he got sent through the veil last night.”

Cho leaned in and kissed Harry on the cheek. “You’re a good kid, Harry, Hermione is a lucky girl.”

Harry shook his head. “I’m the lucky one.”

Hermione walked over and wrapped her arms around Harry’s neck, kissing him on the cheek. “And you’ll continue to be the lucky one if you keep thinking like that.”

“Come on, you three, breakfast is waiting,” Cedric called out.

* * *

Fleur watched them go with a sadness in her eyes until now she’d enjoyed her time at Hogwarts, Harry had warmed her heart as no man had before. But she’d heard the love and devotion Harry had for Hermione in his voice last night. No matter how long they spent together, Fleur would never reach that level of trust and affection with Harry. Fleur couldn’t give up her love for him, but she would be forced to spend her life shackled to the fact she could never have him. Fleur hoped being in France would ease this pain at least a little.

* * *

After breakfast, Harry and Hermione were walking out of the Great Hall when Fleur called them over. “Arry, my mother is here, she’d like to speak to you.”

“Ok,” Harry replied, following Fleur into the Great Hall anti-chamber, once inside a woman who looked like a slightly older version of Fleur walked over and swept down on Harry. She kissed him on both cheeks, making Harry blush up a storm. “Arry Potter, we are eternally in your debt for saving Fleur’s life twice.”

Harry rubbed the back of his head, looking away from the three women in front of him. “I just did what anyone would have done.”

Hermione rolled her eyes. “You’ll have to forgive Harry Missus Delacour. He has trouble admitting how amazing he is.”

“Oui, it is one of his few faults,” Fleur agreed.

“I’m nothing special, I’m just Harry,” He muttered.

“We know that Harry, but you’re special just as yourself,” Hermione replied.

Harry smiled, looking up at them. “Where is Gabrielle, I thought she’d be here.”

“Gabrielle was understandably reticent about returning to Hogwarts, given what happened last time,” Apolline explained.

Harry nodded. “Yeah, I get that.”

“We should go, Harry, we’ve got class,” Hermione said, offering Harry her hand.

“You’re right, and it was a pleasure to meet you, Missus Delacour,” Harry replied, giving Apolline a small bow.

* * *

Once they were alone, Apolline turned to her daughter. “You will find someone else flower, and the ache will subside with time.”

Fleur shook her head. “I don’t think it will Mama…”

* * *

_28 June 1995_

_St Mungo’s Hospital for Magical Maladies_

Albus Dumbledore stepped through the door into Sirius Black’s room; he forced a smile when he saw the man sitting on his bed. He looked different than the last time they’d seen each other at the end of the previous school year. He was clean-shaven, showered, and someone had cut his hair. He was also looking healthier, the potions and a steady stream of quality food had done wonders for his weight and complexion. “Ah, Sirius, my good man.”

Sirius looked up from the Daily Prophet as a scowl crossed his face. “Hello Albus, how are you?”

“I’m well, and you?” Dumbledore asked, taking a seat in a nearby chair.

“Better now I’ve been cleared of a crime I didn’t commit. I regret not being able to kill Pettigrew myself, but then we don’t get everything we want in life. Speaking of not getting everything we want in life, I assume you’re here to talk about Harry.”

“Not directly, would you like a Lemon Drop?” Dumbledore asked, opening the bag he’d brought with him.

Sirius eyed the bag suspiciously. “No, thank you.”

As Dumbledore put the bag away a nurse entered the room carrying a tray of potions for Sirius, he grumbled but consumed them without complaint, as he waited Dumbledore gave a small glance to the nurse who gave him a slight nod. “I do hope you’ll be reasonable about this Sirius, and I only have the best of intentions for young Harry.”

“If you had the best of intentions for him you wouldn’t have left him with his magic hating relatives,” Sirius growled.

Dumbledore waved his hand. “A boy’s exaggerations, I’m sure you thought your parents hated you when you didn’t get everything you wanted.”

“My parents did hate me, Albus, Harry doesn’t exaggerate things, it's not in his nature, besides that I saw how they treated him with my own eyes. They abused him. He needs to go somewhere safe, not back to them.”

“If you’d not run off after Peter, he could have gone to live with you,” Dumbledore bit back. Sirius frowned, dropping his head. Dumbledore smiled when he saw the glassy expression in Sirius’s eyes as the potions took hold. “I’m very concerned about sending Harry to live with you now, and I think it would be best if you went away for a while to have your mind healed by professionals.”

“Professionals, yeah, you’re right, I need to take care of Harry…” Sirius mumbled.

“I agree, but you can’t do it in your current condition, you spent many years in Azkaban, I don’t know if I can trust you to be Harry’s guardian at the moment. You need to think of what’s best for Harry.”

“You’re right, and I need to do what’s right, for Harry.”

“I have arranged with a facility in Switzerland to take you on, once you’re well you can come home and look after Harry,” Dumbledore explained, what he didn’t mention was this was an inpatient facility. Sirius wouldn’t be let out until his doctor believed he wouldn’t harm himself or others. The doctor in question was a dear friend and would do whatever Dumbledore asked of him.

“Yes, you’re right…” Sirius replied as Dumbledore rose from his seat and patted Sirius on the shoulder. “Remus will be along soon.”

Dumbledore walked out of the room and stopped, he looked around the corridor, ensuring he was alone and then plucked one of the vials off the tray and placed it in his pocket. The potion Severus had brewed had been a great success. Sirius’s freedom would not interfere with his plans for Harry.

* * *

_Malfoy Manor_

“Lucius, I’ve Severus has arrived,” Narcissa Malfoy announced into the darkened Lord’s quarters of her husband.

“Thank you, Narcissa; you may go.”

Severus Snape gave Narcissa a small nod as he walked past her into the office. “Good afternoon Lucius, I came as soon as you called.”

“Severus, I need a favour,” Malfoy asked as he sat facing away from the door.

“Anything for you old friend,” Snape replied.

“I need the address of the Halfblood bastard…”

Snape’s eyes widened. “Lucius, what in Merlin’s name happened in that graveyard?”

Lucius growled. “That half-blood bastard killed our Master. I watched him blast Voldemort into pieces in front of my eyes.”

“Impossible, Harry Potter is a mediocre wizard, at best, he can’t possibly…”

“I WAS THERE SEVERUS! I SAW IT WITH MY OWN EYES! I HAVE THE BLOOD ON MY ROBES AS PROOF!”

Snape relented, taking another tack. “I thought you would have been pleased, we’ve spoken in the past about how Riddle’s return would interfere with your business dealings and our ability to make money.”

“If it were just that I might have even thanked the boy, but this…” Malfoy spun his seat around, revealing himself to Snape, there was a diagonal scar running across his once pristine face. “Is unforgivable.”

Snape nodded, memories of his humiliation at the hands of the elder Potter stirring in his mind. “I won’t be able to find those records at Hogwarts, but I do have other means of obtaining that information that the old goat doesn’t know about.”

“Do what you have to Severus, but I want that information, once we have Potter, we’ll bring him his Mud Blood whore and put her in her place while he watches,” Malfoy explained. Snape smirked, he’d often wanted to do that to Granger, he was going to take great pleasure in making Potter watch before he died.

* * *

_Hogwarts School for Wizardry and Witchcraft_

_Headmaster’s Office_

Harry knocked on the door and was called to enter. “Good afternoon, Headmaster.”

“Good Afternoon, my boy, please sit.”

Harry nodded and sat down opposite the older man. “Have you heard from Sirius?”

“Yes Harry, we spoke in the last few days, and we’ve agreed that it would be best if he pursued a course of mind healing before you go to live with him. Therefore, I am afraid you will have to go back to live with the Dursley’s for the time being.”

Harry sunk into his chair, but then perked up a little. “Headmaster, Hermione suggested that I could go stay with her over the summer, even if I can’t go live with Sirius, I could go stay with her.”

Dumbledore shook his head. “I’m afraid I can’t agree to that, Harry, there are protections tied to Number Four Pivet Drive that can’t be replicated. Even if they could, you would be putting Miss Granger’s family in unnecessary danger.”

“Aren’t I putting my relatives in unnecessary danger?” Harry shot back.

“The wards I placed around your relative’s house are tied to the blood bonds between you and your Aunt. Your mother’s love protects you from those who would want to do you harm, young Harry.”

Harry’s face darkened. “That doesn’t explain why they were allowed to abuse me…”

Dumbledore sighed and took off his glasses to clean them on his robes. “I will speak to them on your behalf, but I really must insist you go back to your relatives for at least part of the summer. Perhaps, we can arrange for you to stay with the Weasley’s after a few weeks.”

“Headmaster, my relationship with the Weasley family has soured considerably since the start of the year, I don’t think that would be a good idea.”

“Nonsense Harry, a few harsh words spoken in the heat of the moment shouldn’t ruin a friendship, I’m sure once you’ve both had time to spend some time apart, you’ll realise how much you miss each other. Mister Weasley has been a good friend to you these past four years, I would hate to see that ruined over some petty jealousy,” Dumbledore replied, waving his hand after replacing his glasses on his face.

“May I go, Headmaster?”

Dumbledore sighed again. “Yes, Harry, you may go.”

As Harry entered the Gryffindor Common Room, he spotted Hermione on their usual sofa, he quickly stomped over and threw himself onto the chair opposite. He paused and made to get up, not wanting to inflict his bad mood on her. But Hermione was too quick for him and got up, pushing him down into the chair and sitting in his lap. “What’s wrong?”

“I can’t go live with Sirius…”

“What, why?”

Harry quickly explained his conversation with Dumbledore to Hermione, who scowled angrily. “That miserable old goat how dare he guilt you into doing what he wants! You should ignore him and stay with my family anyway. My Mom would love you.”

Harry smiled and snuggled into Hermione’s body. “I wish I could, but Dumbledore would find out and drag me back to live with the Dursley’s. They’re my legal Guardians, and I’m not yet allowed to make decisions for myself. At least according to the mundane government.”

“It sounds like you’ve looked into this,” Hermione asked, sounding impressed.

“Maybe… he is right about one thing though; I don’t want to endanger your family…”

Hermione frowned. “My family is already in danger. I’m a Mugglesborn Witch; I’m already a target.”

“I love magic, but I hate some of the people who use it.”

Hermione nodded and rested her head against Harry’s shoulder. “I agree.”

* * *

_2 July 1995_

Harry stood in the nearly empty entrance hall with Fleur, Hermione and standing near the door, Luna. He scooped up Fleur’s hand into his own and kissed it. “I will never forget our time together, Mademoiselle.”

Fleur smiled sadly, pulling Harry in for a hug. “I will never forget you, Arry.”

“Maybe one day in the future I can come to visit,” Harry suggested.

“We can come to visit,” Hermione added possessively, grabbing Harry’s hand.

“Yes… I would like that,” Fleur replied, giving Hermione a significant look.

Harry blushed at being caught between two girls, as he caught Luna smirking at him out the corner of his eye. He poked his tongue out at her. He stepped back from Fleur and gave her one final kiss on the back of her hand. “Au Revoir, Mademoiselle.”

“Au Revoir, Mon Amie,” Fleur replied before she reluctantly walked out of the hall after saying goodbye to Luna and returned to the Beauxbaton Carriage.

* * *

An hour later, Harry and Hermione were on board the train back to London. They were alone for the moment, Luna having left the compartment to find the rest of their friends. Hermione turned to Harry, having stowed her robes in her trunk, leaving her in the muggles clothes she’d been wearing underneath. “Harry, are you happy with me?”

Harry turned around his mouth, agape. “Of course, I am, why would you ask that?”

“I saw the way you looked at Fleur, and you told me about how you cuddled together after the third task, I know you’ll miss her and I thought you might eventually pick her over me…” Hermione replied.

Harry walked over and gathered Hermione in his arms. “We’ve talked about this, and I get it, Fleur is beautiful, enough to give any girl pause, any guy too. But I love you, and I’ve committed to you. The time that will change is if you decide you’ve had enough of putting up with me.”

“That will never happen,” Hermione assured him.

“I hope not,” Harry replied.

“Ok you two, break it up, this is a gross violation of the rules around PDA’s,” Cedric said as he entered the compartment with Cho trailing in behind with a grin on her face. Behind her were Neville, Daphne, Luna, Tracy, and Astoria. Hermione and Harry separated with blushes on their faces.

“Emphasis on gross…” Tracy shot teasingly.

Cedric chuckled as he sat down. “Are you looking forward to making Prefect next year you two?”

Harry laughed. “I’m certain Hermione will make Prefect, but I’m sure I won’t.”

Daphne raised a manicured eyebrow. “Why not? Who else from your year in Gryffindor even qualifies, it has to be you and Granger.”

“I don’t think the Headmaster will be overly keen to reward me like that. I haven’t done what he wanted most of the year. I think Neville would probably make a good Prefect though.”

Neville shook his head. “I don’t command the kind of respect you do Harry, I agree with Cedric and Daphne, you’re the only choice. I mean who else would it be, Weasley?”

Hermione shuddered. “If the Headmaster makes Weasley a Prefect I’m returning my badge.”

“If they make Weasley a Prefect, whoever they make Head Boy and Girl should resign in protest,” Cedric added.

“You mean when they make you Head Boy,” Harry teased.

“I can’t assume they’ll make me Head Boy, there are plenty of good candidates,” Cedric replied.

“I think you’re a shoo-in personally,” Hermione commented.

“Way to make a guy blush…” Cedric mumbled, Cho giggled and wrapped her arms around Cedric. “My handsome Hufflepuff, embarrassed by the praise.”

The train ride was mostly pleasant, except for when Ginny and Ron came for a brief visit, they were quickly chased off by the Weasley twins, who offered a brief apology on behalf of their family before disappearing further down the train. Eventually, as they neared London, they were treated to a visit by Malfoy and his cronies. He sneered at them condescendingly. “You may have escaped with your lives somehow, but the Dark Lord will return eventually, and you and everyone you love will suffer for your disrespect.”

Harry, Cedric, and Neville rose from their seats, with the girls drawing their wands behind them. “If all we have to deal with is mouthy little bigots like you, I think we’ll be ok,” Hermione replied.

“Keep talking Granger, one day I’ll shut that mouth of yours for good,” Malfoy bit back, he took a step back when Harry moved forward, threateningly. It was only Cedric’s hand on his shoulder that kept him from hexing the ferret. “Get out before I do something you’ll regret.”

Malfoy sneered at Harry, finally walking out of the compartment. Harry turned to Cedric. “Thanks.”

“As much as I’d like to see you turn that creep into a ferret, it’s probably best not to pick a fight with him right now,” Cedric replied when he saw Harry’s raised eyebrow he added. “I heard about it through the school rumour mill.”

Harry nodded and soon after the three boys left the carriage so the girls could change. Cedric and Neville simply slipped out of his Hogwarts robes, their muggles clothes having been worn underneath.

On the platform, Harry took a couple of moments to speak to his friend’s parents, Amos and Elanor Diggory, who once again thanked him for saving their son’s life. He had a very brief if interesting conversation with Xenophilius Lovegood. He also talked to Augusta Longbottom, who made the customary comment about how he looked like his father, except for his eyes.

Just before they stepped through the barrier, Hermione kissed him on the cheek. “I’ll write to you every day, I promise.”

Once outside, he quickly found Vernon Dursley, who scowled at him. “Get a move on Boy; I’ve already wasted enough time today,” Vernon growled, Harry nodded and hurriedly loaded his trunk into the car resigning himself to a long summer away from the people he loved.

* * *

_No. 4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey_

Albus Dumbledore stood disillusioned in front of Number 4 Privet Drive, he made several intricate motions with his wand, rearranging the wards on the Dursley house to conform with his wishes for Harry Potter. He’d grown too close to the Granger girl over the past school year, he didn’t want that to continue, and as Tom had utterly failed to suitably humble young Harry, this would have to do. A full summer with only Ginny Weasley to talk to should be enough to drive an irreparable wedge between them. Especially when they return to school and Granger claims she wrote to him when the evidence says otherwise. Ron Weasley wanted to get one over on young Harry by dating the girl he loved, he wouldn’t get that now, but that mattered little to Dumbledore, he was sure he could find a nice willing Pureblood girl for Ronald once this was over. For now, he had to concentrate on his plans for Harry and the Potter vaults. He meant the Greater Good, of course.

* * *

_Malfoy Manor_

“You’re sure this is the address?” Malfoy asked.

“I couldn’t find Lily’s sister listed under her maiden name, so I looked into births, deaths, and marriages for Petunia Evans, she married a man named Vernon Dursley in 1979, they’ve lived at that address ever since.”

“And you’re sure the Old Goat doesn’t know about your investigation?”

“Dumbledore doesn’t think about things outside his little world. He would never consider that you could find their address using Muggles means.”

“I guess they do have their uses, occasionally,” Malfoy commented with a smirk.

“Please let me know when you have the boy Lucius; I will retrieve the girl myself.”

“You’ve been looking forward to this, haven’t you?”

Snape smirked. “Yes.”

Malfoy paused before he dismissed Snape. “When does the old Goat intend to leave for his holiday?”

“The fifth, he will be out of the country for at least a fortnight.”

“Good, we will attack once he’s gone.”

* * *

_Hogwarts School for Wizardry and Witchcraft_

_Headmaster’s Office_

_3 July 1995_

Dumbledore looked up as he received his morning mail, he noticed there was an unfamiliar owl among the flock that congregated around his desk. Studying the medallion around one of its legs, he realised it was a paid post owl, and the writing on the envelope was of one Hermione Granger. It was her first letter to young Harry. It seemed the wards were working, he took the letter and dismissed the owl, once it was gone, he promptly discarded the letter in the heath and continued with his day. He was quite looking forward to leaving and starting his holiday.

* * *

_Malfoy Manor_

_9 July 1995_

Lucius Malfoy glanced around the table at the assembled Death Eaters, Crabbe, Goyle, Avery, and Yaxley. It was only a small group as Potter was just a boy. Regardless of his defeat of the Dark Lord, Malfoy was confident all he needed to do was threaten the boy’s relatives, and he would capitulate.

“You may harm the boy, but I will be the one to kill him. I want him to suffer greatly first, you will find the reward more than adequate. You will be paid handsomely, but you will also participate when we capture his Mud Blood lover…” Malfoy finished, there was a round of laughter at that as the group prepared itself for battle.

* * *

_4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey_

_10 July 1995_

Harry laid in bed, staring up at the ceiling of his room at the Dursley’s, he wondered what Hermione was doing, he assumed he would know. But Hermione had yet to write, and Harry wasn’t able to send her a letter asking why as Hedwig was locked in her cage once again. He’d tried calling on Dobby, but the little House Elf wasn’t allowed to help him because he worked for Hogwarts. It wasn’t like he wasn’t receiving his mail, so this wasn’t the issue. He’d received a letter from Ginny almost every day, and he’d even thought about responding, it wasn’t like he was getting any mail from Hermione.

He wanted to believe there was an innocent reason for Hermione not writing him. But there was a niggle at the back of his mind, a voice telling him that everything he’d experienced over the past year was a lie and that Hermione didn’t love him. He wanted to believe that wasn’t true, but it was getting harder to ignore the voice.

Suddenly Vernon burst into the room and grabbed Harry by the arm. “What are you playing at boy?!”

“What, Uncle Vernon? What’s wrong?!”

“I’ll show you!”

Vernon proceeded to drag Harry downstairs and forced him into the living room. He pointed outside at the five hooded figures standing in the street. The streetlights had been extinguished, and only the light of the moon showed that they were there. Harry’s blood chilled in his veins. “Death Eaters…”

“I told you not to invite your freak friends to our house. We’re respectable normal people, imagine what the neighbours will say!”

“Vernon, they’re not my friends, they work for the man who killed my parents!” Harry yelled.

“They killed Lily?” Petunia asked, fearfully.

“They work for the man who killed her, they’re his minions, his Death Eaters,” Harry explained.

“What kind of stupid name is Death Eaters, he’s probably making it up so he won’t get a whipping!” Vernon proclaimed.

“No Vernon, he’s not, I remember the letters Lily sent me from that school, she talked about Death Eaters and how they were recruited. That Prince boy, the one who was friends with Lily and who went to the same school as her, he became one.”

Harry stared at his Aunt. “Someone you knew when you were kids went to school with my Mum?”

“Yes, his name, oh what was it, Stephen, no, Sean, Sev… Sev, something…?”

“S-Severus? P-Professor Snape knew my Mum?” Harry blurted out.

“Oh yes, that’s right, Severus, he had quite the crush on Lily, so he became a Professor, I’m surprised, apart from Lily he didn’t seem to like people much…”

“He hasn’t changed…” Harry mumbled as he turned to Vernon. “If you give me my wand I can stop them if you don’t they kill you and Dudley and rape and kill Aunt Petunia, I hate you both for what you’ve done to me, but I wouldn’t wish that on you.”

Vernon paled and quickly unlocked the cupboard under the stairs, giving Harry his wand. “Get rid of them,” He hissed.

Harry snatched his wand out of Vernon’s hand and ran out the back door. He quickly scaled the fence into the neighbour’s yard. Once he was over their fence, he landed in the street. He hadn’t had time to put his shoes on, so he was in simple slippers. But he would make do. He ran around the corner and spotted the Death Eaters trying and failing to defeat the wards Dumbledore had placed on the house. “Hey! Death Munchers, looking for me!”

“Grab the half-blood bastard!” Malfoy ordered.

Harry took off, even in slippers, he was younger and faster than the fat old Death Eaters who had grown complacent after years of living off the hard work of others. He took a couple of shortcuts and made it to the park near the Dursley’s first. It was a place he’d spent a lot of time over the past couple of years. It was a place he could escape the harsh treatment of the Dursley’s for at least a couple of hours. As he ran across the open field, he failed to hear the pop of Apperation behind him. He was struck in the leg by a piercing curse. He screamed in pain as he tumbled to the ground.

An out of breath Malfoy loomed over him, smirking viciously. “For that Potter, you will suffer before we kill you, Crucio!”

**To Be Continued…**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, ok, before you start writing angry reviews, remember what it says on the tin. This is a three-way pairing, Harry/Hermione/Fleur. I am committed to that, even if it looks like I’m not right now. I promise Harry and Fleur have some one on one time coming up starting next chapter. No, Hermione in sight.
> 
> I did see one reviewer comment that the build-up between Harry and Hermione was fast, but the relationship between Fleur and Harry has been slow to build. I don’t dispute that, but Fleur and Harry have only known each other for a few months. Harry and Hermione have lived together for most of the last four years at the point where this story starts. They’ve been dancing around each other for a while so it’s only natural that relationship would develop quicker than the one between Harry and Fleur, or Hermione and Fleur.
> 
> Lastly, thank you to everyone who has favourited this story, we have surpassed the total favourites for Dangerous with the posting of Chapter 6.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Harry Potter Franchise or its characters. All characters used are the property of their respective owners.
> 
> This story is rated M for violence, language, & sexual themes.
> 
> Special Thanks to Sakubato, my Alpha on this story.
> 
> This story is a Horcrux free zone.
> 
> Warning: Manipulative Dumbledore & Weasley Bashing (Ron, Molly, & Ginny.)

_French Embassy, London, GB_

_10 July 1995_

Fleur sat up in bed. She had sweat pouring down her face as she brushed her hair back. She pulled her night robe off the hook and ran down the corridor and into her Mother’s room. Apolline Delacour looked up from the report she was studying. “Fleur, what’s wrong?”

“It’s Arry, he’s in danger, I saw him in my dream, Death Eaters were chasing him,” Fleur explained in rapid French.

“Oh Fleur, you just had a nightmare, I’m sure Arry is...” Apolline began, but when Fleur fell to the ground, screaming, she gathered her daughter in her arms as Apolline’s guards entered the room, wands were drawn. Apolline held her hand over Fleur’s chest and focused, her eyes widened as she saw Fleur’s aura.

“Dammit, Fleur, concentrate, reach out for Arry, tell me where he is, tell me with your magic,” Apolline pleaded, grabbing Fleur’s hand. Fleur nodded and squeezed her eyes shut, channelling her magic through her body and into Apolline.

Apolline carried Fleur to her bed, and wandlessly summoned her travelling cloak. “Take my hands,” Apolline ordered as she took the hands of her guards and the three apparated out of the Embassy.

* * *

_Little Whinging Park, Little Whinging, Surrey_

Lucius Malfoy sneered as he poured his magic into the Cruciatus curse as Harry writhed on the ground in excruciating pain. He hadn’t waited for anyone to erect a silencing charm around the area. He was too focused on exacting revenge from Potter. He raised his wand lifting the curse. He loomed over Harry, who whimpered on the ground, convulsing in pain. “Can you hear me, boy,” Lucius asked as he removed his mask. “Can you see the scar you inflicted?” Malfoy asked as he rose to his full height. “It’s nothing compared to the scars I will leave on your dead, broken body, or the horrors I will inflict on your precious Mud Blood lover while you watch, _Cru… GAHHHH!!”_

Malfoy screamed as a fireball hit his arm, making him stagger back, trying to extinguish the flames with the sleeve of his robe. He wheeled around, alarmed as a small group of men surrounded him and his now unconscious allies. “What, what is happening?!”

“My name is Apolline Delacour, I am the head of the Bureau de la Justice Magique for the Ministère des Affaires Magiques de la France (Ministry of Magical Affairs, France). Lucius Malfoy I am arresting you for casting an Unforgivable Curse in violation of the directives of the International Confederation of Wizards.”

Lucius was now seething with rage as he watched one of Apolline’s guards gather Harry in their arms. He looked between the guards and his fallen comrades and then back to Apolline. “No, you miserable whore, I won’t be denied! Cru...”

A brace of stunners felled Lucius before he could complete the incantation. Apolline loomed over him with a scowl on her face. “Contact the Department of Law Enforcement. Let them know we have several Death Eaters in our custody. Take Mister Potter back to the Embassy.”

“Shouldn’t we send him to St. Mungo’s, Ma’am?”

“I don’t trust the British. I don’t have any faith they will protect Mister Potter from Lucius Malfoy’s friends. We will take him to the Embassy for tonight and then move him to Paris in the morning.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” Apolline’s guards responded.

* * *

_Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital, Paris, France_

_Magical Treatment Wing_

Harry woke up and groaned. His entire body ached, he would have been happy just to lie there and not move until the pain subsided. But Harry had heard Malfoy threatening Hermione. He needed to get up and save her. He tried to rise from the bed when a pair of gentle hands pressed on his shoulders, and Harry had to bite his lip to stop from crying out in pain. He relented and dropped back onto the bed as Fleur came into view. “It’s ok, Arry, you’re safe.”

“Fleur, what... where am I?”

“You’re in the Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital in Paris, my Mother and her guards saved you from the Death Eaters.”

“Your Mum has guards?” Harry asked, sounding puzzled.

“My mother is the head of Bureau de la Justice Magique, our version of your Department of Magical Law Enforcement.”

Harry nodded. “What happened to Lucius Malfoy and the other Death Eaters who attacked me?”

“Lucius Malfoy is being held at the French Embassy in London, my Mother is arranging for Mister Malfoy’s transfer into French custody. The other men were released back into the custody of the British DMLE.”

“I hope your Mum is good, Lucius Malfoy is really good friends with the Minister of Magic.”

Fleur grinned. “My Mother is superb at her job, and Mister Malfoy made the mistake of trying to attack her with an Unforgivable Curse. He will not be able to hide behind your Minister.”

“Fleur, I haven’t heard from Hermione since I got off the train from Hogwarts, she promised to write every day. I thought she might be upset with me. But now I’m worried she might have been attacked...”

Fleur nodded. “I have to go back to London as soon as I’m finished here, I will check on her.”

Harry smiled and squeezed her hand. “Thank you; I wanted to write to ask why she hadn’t sent me a letter, but Hedwig...” Harry stopped. “Hedwig, my mail owl, the Dursley’s made me lock her in her cage. If we don’t go and save her, she’ll starve or die because she doesn’t have any water...” Harry ranted, trying to get out of bed.

Fleur gently, but firmly pushed him back into the bed. “Arry, after I finish checking on Hermione, I will get your things and Hedwig.”

Harry relented, slumping back onto the bed, exhausted. “Thank you, Fleur.”

Fleur gave me a small smile and nodded. “You’re welcome, Arry.”

* * *

_French Embassy, London, GB_

Lucius Malfoy paced the small room he’d been confined too since he woke up. He’d checked the door but found it locked, and he knew there were at least two guards on the door because one had come to check on him before leaving him alone again. He’d demanded to be released, but when those demands were ignored, he instead demanded to speak to the Minister for Magic.

The man Malfoy has demanded to see then entered, with a mixture of anger and worry on his face. “Cornelius, I assume you’re here to escort me out of the Frog cage?”

“Shut up Lucius and sit down!” Fudge spat at him.

“How dare you speak to me like that, I am...”

“You are _nothing_ , you were something, but then the Potter boy exonerated Sirius Black, and you lost your seat on the Wizengamot. You lost access to the Black Vaults, and I’m well aware that without them, you have limited financial means. The French want you tried in an ICW courtroom, and I’m going to let them, have you. It would be a suitable punishment for how utterly stupid you were. You tried to cast an Unforgivable Curse on the head of the Bureau de la Justice Magique, worse she’s the daughter of the Veela Representative to the ICW. The French Minister almost burned down my fireplace in her rage. Apolline Delacour is the first choice as the next Minister. Andromeda Tonks and Amelia Bones are even making noise about reopening the investigation into the Chamber of Secrets incident from two years ago.”

“What does Andromeda Tonks have to do with this?” Malfoy yelled.

“Sirius Black has left Britain to seek mind healing from his experience in Azkaban; Andromeda Tonks has been named the Proxy to the Black Seat on the Wizengamot. They will not let you walk away, and you can’t buy yourself out of this.”

“Then, why are you here?” Malfoy hissed, his hands itching to strangle the idiot.

“I came to inform you that the Ministry will not be opposing the extradition request of the Ministère des Affaires Magiques de la France. I wish you luck Mister Malfoy.”

“You will _pay_ for this Cornelius! I know when and how much I paid you, you won’t be able to hide when I start talking!”

Fudge waved his hand. “All campaign contributions you’ve made over the years are well documented. I have nothing to hide.”

* * *

_Granger Residence, Crawley, GB_

Hermione sat in her room, by the door there was a packed suitcase, she was ready for her trip to France, but at the same time, she wasn’t. “Hermione, honey, are you ready to go?” Emma Granger asked as she walked up the corridor to her room.

“Um, I guess...” Hermione muttered.

Emma sighed, her heart hurt seeing her beloved daughter in emotional turmoil, particularly over a boy. If she ever saw this Harry Potter that Hermione had been so effusive about during the school year, she would give him a piece of her mind. No one broke her daughter’s heart. She’d seen how much it hurt her when Dan hadn’t come back from deployment, it had almost broken her too, but she’d had to be strong and push on for Hermione’s sake.

Emma sat down beside her daughter. She wrapped an arm around Hermione and pulled her close. “We still have some time before we have to go to the airport, we could drive to Harry’s and ask him why he hasn’t replied to your letters, maybe there is an innocent explanation. You’ve told me before his relatives are horrible to him. Maybe they won’t let him send you a letter back?”

Hermione’s face brightened. “You think so?”

“I do, you tend to overthink things sometimes my love. You have a big beautiful brain, but sometimes it can be a detriment.”

Hermione nodded in agreement, wiping her tears away. “Thank you, Mum, I love you.”

“I love you too, Hermione.”

As Hermione and Emma drove away, after loading up the car for their trip, Fleur Delacour appeared in a nearby ally. She disillusioned herself and walked into the street, stopping outside the address she’d gotten from the Embassy phone book. Fleur walked around the house, even venturing inside. When she was sure Hermione wasn’t there, and the place was undisturbed, she left. She was furious with the Brown-haired girl for leading Harry on. But that was a discussion for another time, right now she had to get Harry’s things and Hedwig. With a pop, she apparated away.

* * *

_4 Privet Drive, Surrey, GB_

Petunia Dursley struggled with Harry’s massive trunk trying to pull it towards the front door. She planned to drag it down the street and leave it on the curb. The bin men would collect it eventually, Petunia didn’t want Harry’s freakishness in her house when he wasn’t here. The owl would go next, Petunia didn’t want a dead Owl in her home, but she wouldn’t release it to go back to him. The best thing to do was add a drop of bleach to the bird’s water and let it die, and it would make good fertiliser for her garden.

As Petunia reached about halfway to the door, she heard a knock. When she opened the door, she found a gorgeous woman standing on the other side. Her long silvery blonde hair shimmered in the morning sunlight. “Yes, can I help you?”

“Hello, I’m a friend of Arry’s. I’m here to collect his things.”

Petunia’s face darkened, this girl was a friend of the freak and French, that was not a good combination. “He doesn’t have anything here; we threw it all away.”

Fleur simply smiled as she blasted her Allure at the older woman; it made her face go slack and allowed Fleur to push past her into the house. A few minutes later, Fleur was walking out, the trunk and cage shrunk down to fit in her pocket. She’d told Hedwig to meet her later at the French Embassy in London and then she would take the Owl to Harry. She stopped in the entrance hall; the entire family was assembled watching her in slack-jawed awe. A wicked idea crossed her mind, and she walked up to each Dursley in turn and whispered in their ears. It would be a few days, and Fleur wanted to be far away when it began. Fleur left the house and quickly retreated into a nearby ally and apparated away.

* * *

An hour later, a black late-model BMW M3 pulled up outside the house, and Hermione Granger got out. She knocked on the door, and it was yanked open by Petunia. “What, what do you want?”

Hermione flinched, and Petunia caught herself, forcing a smile. “Hello dear, are you a friend of Duddikins?”

Hermione had to bite the inside of her cheek to resist replying with a nasty retort. “Um, no, I’m a friend of Harry’s...”

“Another one of the Freak’s friends? Well you’re too late he’s gone, some French bint was here earlier and took all his things. He’s not coming back.”

Hermione froze as a cold feeling settled in her stomach. “F-French... d-did she say who she was?”

“No, just that _Arry_ , was a friend of hers and she was here to collect his things. Do you want something, or will you go away?”

Hermione nodded numbly and slowly walked back to her Mothers car. Emma Granger waited for a couple of minutes before speaking. “Was he there?”

Hermione shook her head. “No, he’s gone, he... he left me for Fleur.”

“Why would you say that?”

“Harry’s Aunt said Fleur was here earlier, and she took his things... the only explanation is the reason he didn’t write too me is because he was writing to Fleur,” Hermione explained as tears began rolling down her cheeks.

“Hermione, there could be other reasons, if Harry had planned to leave his relatives and go be with Fleur, why would he leave his things behind for her to collect later?”

“Because he’s a big jerk...” Hermione snapped angrily.

“You don’t believe that maybe he left because he had no choice, maybe he went to Fleur because he couldn’t come to you. You won’t know for sure until you talk to him in person, for now, you shouldn’t assume Harry has left you for another girl. Does that sound like something he would do?”

Hermione shook her head slowly. “No...”

“I didn’t think so, so let’s enjoy our trip and maybe if we’re lucky we’ll see Harry. I mean if Harry’s in France and we’re in France...” Emma suggested with a smile. Hermione returned it with a watery smile of her own. Emma was trying to assume the best about the boy, she didn’t want to think that someone Hermione had spoken so highly of would be so insensitive, but if he were, she would give him both barrels for breaking her daughter’s heart.

* * *

_Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital, Paris, France_

_Magical Treatment Wing_

Fleur stood outside Harry’s room; she’d stopped by her home and put his things and Hedwig’s cage in one of the guest bedrooms near her own. Now she was faced with the task of telling him that the girl he loved didn’t return those feelings.

Fleur was determined to be there for him, even if he didn’t want her the way she wanted him. They were bonded, but that was immaterial, Fleur had to be Harry’s friend first, if that developed into something else later, she would deal with it then.

Fleur knocked and then entered, a weary Harry looked up expectantly. “Fleur, is Hermione ok?”

Fleur nodded. “I went to her house; it was untouched by magic as far as I could tell. I went inside to make sure; I think the Granger’s may have left on a trip.”

Harry thought for a moment, then nodded. “Hermione has said in the past that they go summer skiing in the Alps, but then, that means...” Harry faltered, he lowered his head so Fleur wouldn’t see the tears rolling down his cheeks.

Fleur reached out and grabbed Harry’s hand, drawing his attention. “Just because she wasn’t, there doesn’t mean Hermione doesn’t care about you. Perhaps she left for her holiday straight from the train station, or she wasn’t able to get an owl to send you a letter. Given what I’ve been told about your relatives I doubt she could have sent a letter to you through the mail.”

Harry nodded. “Yeah, I guess, I mean, Uncle Vernon would have thrown my letter into the bin, he’s done that before.”

Fleur had to suppress a smile as she thought about how she’d punished them, but that would wait, it would be a pleasant surprise for Harry in a few days. “Even if Hermione decided you weren’t worth it, which I don’t think she has,” Fleur added quickly. “I am here for you Arry, and I am your friend, I won’t leave you.”

Harry looked down at the bed again, a watery smile crossing his lips. “You say that, but everyone leaves me eventually. My parents, the teachers who wanted to help me when I was at school, Professor Lupin, Hermione… Something happens, or they decide I’m not worth it, it won’t be any different with you Fleur.”

Fleur frowned. “Yes, it will, watch,” she raised her to her chest and focused her magic. A sphere appeared between them, a stream of light connected them to the globe. “Arry, this ball of light represents my magic. Usually, there would only a single stream of light, the one that connects me to my magic. But the stream of light connects us, we call it a Soul Bond.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means we’re connected, linked,” Fleur explained.

Harry looks down at Fleur’s hand which had slipped into his, worriedly. “For how long?”

“It’s for life.”

Harry frowned. “Is there any way to change it?”

Fleur looked down at the bed, hiding her eyes and pulling her hand away. “Is the idea of being bonded to me for life that unpleasant?”

Harry’s eyes widened as he realised what he’d said. He reached out and lifted Fleur’s chin so she would be looking at him, he reached out and took her hand at the same time. “No, it’s not, I wasn’t asking for my sake I was asking for yours. I’m not the easiest person to be around, and there is always someone else who wants to hurt the people around me. I didn’t mean to make you feel unwanted Fleur if it weren’t...” Harry paused, frowning. “Anyone would be lucky to have you in their life.”

“Even you?” Fleur asked hopefully, she’d noticed the paused and his hesitance to say Hermione’s name, she hoped, despite herself, that this meant there was a problem between them.

“Yes,” Harry replied unequivocally.

Fleur gave him a watery smile. She didn’t want to be a simpering waif who fawned over a silly boy. But besides Harry’s tremendous magical potential and his beautiful green eyes, he was handsome and kind, traits that reminded her of the first man she ever loved, her father. She was seven when he’d died. She’d spent three days in bed refusing to eat. Even now, ten years later, there was a dull ache in her heart.

Harry reached up and wiped the tears from her eyes gently with his thumb. “Please don’t cry, Fleur, not over me...”

“Are you saying you’re not worth crying over?” Fleur asked.

“Yes,” he replied solemnly.

“I disagree,” She replied, cupping her cheek. “There are plenty of people who care about you, plenty that would be upset if they knew what happened to you.”

“Not as many as you might think...” Harry replied bitterly.

“I will be with you when we speak to Hermione until then you should rest and recover, in a couple of days you will come home with me.”

Harry blushed. “Are you sure that’s ok?”

“Oui, my Mother and I insist. Gabrielle is also looking forward to seeing you again.”

I thought I would end up back at the Dursley’s...”

Fleur’s face grew serious. “Non, you will never return to that place. They are horrible people, I was there only five minutes, and I could see that. Why your Headmaster believed that was the best place for you, I will never know. However, if I see him again, I will ask, and I will not be gentle about letting him know my unhappiness.”

Harry blushed, looking down at the bed again. “Thank you, Fleur, so few people have ever looked out for me, only really you and Hermione.”

“I will always be here for you Arry. We’re connected and…” Fleur blushed. “I love you.”

“Fleur…”

“I know, but it doesn’t change how I feel about you, and no, before you ask it has nothing to do with our bond, I was falling in love with you before that. I liked you since we met.”

“Even when I was a ‘leetle boy’?” Harry asked teasingly.

“You’re never going to let me live that down, are you?” Fleur asked.

Harry grinned. “Maybe one day, eventually.”

“I was upset that someone was stealing my limelight, I was mistaken, you’re anything but a little boy,” Fleur replied, Harry’s grin widened, and Fleur rolled her eyes. “I wasn’t talking about what I saw when we were studying the egg for the second task.”

Fleur gave Harry a gentle shove as he chuckled. “You’re such a _boy_!”

**To Be Continued…**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this chapter is much shorter than the last two, but I thought I would do a single shorter chapter to transition into the French arc of the story. Hermione will be on holiday next chapter both in and from the story. I know some of you have been complaining that I’ve been too focused on Harry/Hermione, but I always knew this part was coming. Now the Harry/Fleur shippers will get there wish, at least two full chapters of just Harry/Fleur.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Harry Potter Franchise or its characters. All characters used are the property of their respective owners.
> 
> This story is rated M for violence, language, & sexual themes.
> 
> A Special Thanks to Sakubato who is the Alpha on this story.
> 
> This story is a Horcrux free zone.
> 
> Warning: Manipulative Dumbledore & Weasley Bashing (Ron, Molly, & Ginny.)

_Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital, Paris, France_

_Magical Treatment Wing_

_11 July 1995_

Harry emerged from the bathroom to find Fleur digging through his trunk, and she’d brought it to the hospital to allow him to change so they could leave. Harry could see a frown marring her beautiful face. “Fleur, what’s wrong?”

Fleur pulled out an oversized shirt; it was ragged with holes in the armpits and small rips that Harry had stitched closed. “Arry, are these the only clothes you have?”

Harry rubbed the back of his head, looking away. “Well, yeah, the Dursley’s never bought me new clothes. All I ever got were hand me downs. They made sure they were always the worst of his clothes.”

Fleur ripped the shirt in half and tossed it into a bin. “Non, this will not do, we are going home so you can get settled in and then we are going shopping.”

Harry frowned, rubbing the back of his head. “Fleur, the only money I have is the few galleons in the money bag in my trunk. I don’t have any currency I could exchange for Francs.”

Fleur waved it away. “That won’t be a problem. I will pay for everything.”

“I can’t...” Harry began, but Fleur placed her finger on his lips, causing him to fall silent. “You can let me and you will Arry. I like spending money on you, and I like shopping. It will be fun.”

“Can I pay you back later?” Harry asked, muffled by Fleur’s finger pressed against his lips.

Fleur sighed and rolled her eyes. “If it means that much to you, Oui, but not today.”

Harry nodded, and Fleur flicked her wand, shrinking the trunk and giving it to Harry to put in his pocket. Fleur then grabbed Harry’s hand and led him out of the hospital to a warded awning where Fleur apparated them to the gates of Fleur’s home.

* * *

_Chateau Delacour,_ _Neuilly-sur-Seine, France_

Once Harry and Fleur came to a stop, and Harry found his feet, he looked around, they were standing on a cobbled driveway amongst a ring of cedar trees that shielded the house and grounds from the neighbours. The gate was flanked by guards who gave Fleur a curt nod as she approached. “This is my friend Arry; he will be spending the summer with us.”

One of the men walked forward, holding out his hand. “May I see your wand, sir?”

Harry glanced at Fleur, who gave him an encouraging nod, resting a hand on Harry’s shoulder. “The guard will store your wand here at the gate. Only family and certain trusted members of staff are allowed to have wands on the grounds of the Chateau.”

Harry palmed his wand and handed it to the guard, handle first. “Please take care of it.”

The guard nodded, walking over to the guard hut, and putting Harry’s wand in a locking cabinet. “We take great pride in ensuring all of Madame Delacour’s guests are well looked after. We’ve been instructed to be particularly attentive to the needs of Miss Fleur’s boyfriend.”

Harry and Fleur both blushed and turned away from each other as Fleur grumbled about her interfering mother. “Arry is _not_ my boyfriend,” Fleur replied ‘yet’ she added mentally. “We’re just good friends, right Arry?”

Harry gave her a jerky nod, not quite meeting her eyes. “Y-yeah, good friends.”

Fleur smiled and leaned kissed Harry on the cheek, making him blush, but she noticed he didn’t pull away from her. So, Fleur wrapped her arms around Harry’s and pulled him forward into the grounds, ignoring the chuckles of the guards. Fleur knew they’d heard about her past conquests from her gossip of a little sister, but this was the first time she’d brought any boy home.

Harry’s eyes roamed the grounds as they walked down the cobbled path towards the Chateau. Fleur noticed Harry’s smile. “What’s up, Arry?”

“I was thinking Aunt Petunia would have a heart attack if she saw this garden, it’s beautiful and so well kept. She couldn’t even dream of having a garden this nice.”

Fleur’s eyes glowed evilly. “I should have left her a little present then, oh well, if I ever have to go back and rescue you again, I’ll set it on fire on the way out.”

Harry stopped when he reached the doors of the house. “You don’t have to come to rescue me Fleur, I hate my relatives, but the Headmaster won’t let me leave. I don’t want to give him a reason to bother you.”

“I don’t care if he bothers me, you’re more important than upsetting a senile old man. Besides, if he does get upset with me, I have my Mother and the Minister on my side. They will protect both of us.”

“But I’m not a French Citizen Fleur. They can’t protect me from the Headmaster...”

“Says who? A man who let you compete in a stupid tournament where you had to fight dragons and Acromantula’s and had your arm ripped off, non, I will _not_ let you fight your battles alone. I am your friend. I plan to be your friend for many years to come. Headmaster Dumbledore nor his Wizengamot will stop me.”

Fleur let out an aggravated breath and realised Harry was now looking at the ground, blushing. Fleur lent down, letting Harry see down the front of her blouse, which did nothing to alleviate his blush. “Arry, what’s wrong?”

“W-well, you got all worked up, and it was kind of hot, a-and I can see down your shirt?” Harry squeaked.

“See anything you like?”

Harry’s blush deepened. “Y-yeah, I-I do, but then plenty o-of guys would...”

Fleur giggled. “But plenty of boys aren’t getting a look, only you Arry.”

Harry grinned. “It looks great.”

“I’m glad you think so,” Fleur replied, draping her arms over Harry’s shoulders, as he continued to stare down her shirt, with her implicit consent.

The two flinched when the front doors flew open, clattering against the wall behind. “Bonjour sœur!”

Harry’s head dropped and rested against Fleur’s neck as Fleur rolled her eyes and glanced over at Gabrielle. “Bonjour Gabrielle.”

“Maman is waiting for you in her office,” Gabrielle explained before skipping merrily away, giggling.

Fleur sighed and looked down when she realised her body was shaking slightly. Harry was still resting his body against hers, and he was laughing. “What’s funny mon aime?”

“Gabrielle’s timing, she was watching and waiting to strike, wasn’t she?”

“Oui, I love my petite sœur very much, but she can be a brat. She has a habit of gossiping about my uh... conquests.”

“Have there been many conquests?” Harry asked frowning.

A tingle ran up Fleur’s spine when she caught the mild annoyance in Harry’s voice. Harry was jealous, that was encouraging, at least to Fleur. “Not many, but none of them measures up to you, Arry.”

Harry gave Fleur a blush-inducing grin. “Good.”

He scooped up her hand into his, and the two entered the house, and Fleur guided him up to Apolline Delacour’s study. Harry blushed when he saw Apolline, he knew that Fleur’s beauty would never diminish due to her Veela heritage but seeing Apolline Delacour sitting behind the desk in her study, confirmed it. Apolline was a fully grown adult, but you could easily mistake her for Fleur’s sister.

“Bonjour Arry Potter, I’m glad to see you looking so well.”

“Bonjour Madame Delacour, thank you for welcoming me into your home. I appreciate it,” Harry replied, giving her a small bow.

“Ma ma Fleur, il est une bouffée d'air frais par rapport à vos autres conquêtes.” (My my Fleur, he is a breath of fresh air compared to your other conquests.)

“Ce n'est pas une conquête, maman, je l'aime,” (He is not a conquest, mother, I love him.) Fleur bit back hotly.

“Je sais que tu le fais, mon amour, mais il est déjà amoureux de quelqu'un d'autre. Je ne veux pas que vous ayez le cœur brisé,” (i know you do, my love, but he's already in love with someone else. I don't want to see you get your heartbroken.) Apolline replied softly.

“Je ne le ferai pas, il ne me fera pas ça,” (I won't, he won't do that to me,) Fleur answered, rubbing her arm absently.

Apolline let Fleur’s response pass without comment, instead turning her attention to Harry. “I have discussed your situation with my counterpart at the British DMLE...”

“Madam Bones?” Harry asked.

“Oui, do you know her?”

Harry shook his head. “Not personally, I go to school with her niece, Susan.”

“I see, in any case, after interviewing your relatives we’ve agreed that it is untenable for you to continue living there. We were hoping to speak to your Godfather about it, but he seems to have disappeared.”

“He went away to see mind healers, at least that’s what Headmaster Dumbledore told me,” Harry explained.

“I see…” Apolline replied, she picked up a pen and scribbled a note on a piece of parchment. “Amelia and I have agreed that for your safety the best place for you, for the rest of this summer is here. Once we’ve established contact with Lord Black, we will discuss your options after you return to school.”

“I don’t have to go back to the Dursley’s?” Harry asked apprehensively.

“Oui, that’s what’s been agreed,” Apolline responded.

“The Headmaster might object…” Harry offered.

Apolline waved a dismissive hand. “He is not your Guardian anymore. It is Lord Black. I confirmed that with Amelia when we spoke. After the charges against Lord Black were dropped his representative to the Wizengamot filed to have your guardianship returned to Lord Black.”

Harry sent a confused glance at Fleur before returning to Apolline. “Why do you keep calling Sirius, Lord Black?”

“Are you aware of Lord Black’s status in your homeland?” Apolline asked, to which Harry shook his head. “Are you even aware of your family’s history or status?”

“Madame Delacour, I was raised by my magic hating mundane relatives, the first time I learned about magic was when Hagrid, the Hogwarts groundskeeper came and took me to buy my things for my first year. Until then, I was expecting to attend St Brutus’s Secure Centre for Incurably Criminal Boys. I don’t know a lot about my parents, apart from how everyone says I look like my father, but I have my mother’s eyes.”

Apolline frowned and motioned for the two to sit down. “Headmaster Dumbledore should have explained this to you when you were eleven, but due to his oversight, deliberate or otherwise, I suppose it is down to me. Your Godfather Sirius Black is the last living legitimate heir to the Most Ancient and Most Noble House of Black and its fortune.”

“Last _legitimate_ heir?” Harry asked.

“Oui, since Lord Black was sent to Azkaban Lucius Malfoy has claimed regency over the Black seat owing to his wife being a Black by birth. Since by law only male siblings can inherit, it was assumed his son, Draco was heir Black. However, this was disproven when Andromeda Tonks became Lord Black’s proxy. As I understand it, Missus Tonks was cast out of her family for marrying a Mugglesborn Wizard. Everyone assumed this was the case for Lord Black as well but owing to circumstances I am not familiar with that is not the case.”

Harry nodded thoughtfully. “I am the last living Potter, does that mean I am a Lord of the realm as well?”

“Yes and no, you only become a Lord of the realm when you reach majority, in England that is seventeen.”

“Does that mean I have a proxy on the Wizengamot?”

“It would be safe to say so yes and given how he has taken control of every other aspect of your life, I would suspect your proxy is Headmaster Dumbledore.”

“Wouldn’t that be a severe conflict of interest seeing as he’s the Chief Wizard?” Fleur asked.

Apolline nodded. “I can’t see how it wouldn’t be, but as I’ve learned the British Magical community tend to turn a blind eye to things that don’t affect their quality of life. As long as no one upsets the status quo, they will accept it.”

“Thank you, Mother, for explaining that, now we should be going, I have a full day of shopping planned for us,” Fleur said, interrupting. She scooped up Harry’s hand into hers and pulled him out of his seat. Harry tried to keep up, but his legs gave out on him, and he had to reach out with his free hand to steady himself.

“Arry, are you ok?” Fleur asked helping Harry into the seat he’d just grabbed.

“Uh, not really, I suddenly feel dizzy.”

“Understandable, your magic is still recovering from your dual experiences in the Graveyard and the park, I think you should rest for today.”

Harry and Fleur nodded as Harry resumed his feet. Slowly the two exited Apolline’s study and Fleur guided him through to the other side of the house where the bedrooms were. Fleur stopped outside a pair of doors that ran parallel to each other. “This is your room Arry,” Fleur explained, nodding her head towards the door. “And” Fleur continued walking across the corridor to the other door, resting her hand on the knob. “This is my room,” Fleur gave Harry a cheeky grin. “Don’t get any ideas about sneaking in during the night. That would be naughty.”

Harry blushed and rubbed the back of his head. “I-I-I…”

Fleur walked back over to Harry, kissing him on the nose. “I know you wouldn’t, but you’re so easy to tease.”

Harry sighed. “You’re not good for my heart…”

“You’ve been very good for mine,” Fleur replied, taking his hand, and placing it on her chest.

Harry smiled gently, moving his hand from her chest and up to cup her face. “I’m glad you’ve brightened my life, I’ve met so few people that can do that.”

Fleur blushed and grinned. “I didn’t know you were such a smooth talker, Mister Potter.”

Harry chuckled. “Neither did I…”

Fleur moved Harry’s hand away from her face, resisting the urge to kiss his palm as she opened the door to his room. “There is someone else who has been worried about you.”

Harry turned to find his vision obscured by a flurry of white feathers, and he had to duck to avoid being cuffed over the head by an upset Hedwig who landed on his shoulder, hooting indignantly. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I didn’t know that I wouldn’t be able to come back and get you after I chased off the Death Eaters.”

Hedwig hooted again, glaring at Harry. “Ok, I know trying to make them chase me was dumb, but what other choice did I have. If I’d used magic, Malfoy would have made up an excuse to get my thrown in Azkaban.”

Hedwig bobbed her head and began grooming Harry as an apology. “I’m sorry for worrying you, I was worried about you too, I was scared the Dursley’s would hurt you.”

Hedwig hooted in response, hopping off Harry’s shoulder and onto Fleur’s, Harry smiled. “Yeah, she saved my life too.”

“Your Hedwig is a smart and beautiful Owl, Arry.”

“She’s also fond of smart and beautiful women, and it’s a great combination, in my opinion.”

Fleur rolled her eyes, stroking Hedwig’s feathers. “Mercy, Arry, any more of this and I’ll have to diet for a week to work off the sweets you’re feeding me.”

Harry barked out a laugh. “You’re a Veela. You’ve never had to diet in your life.”

“Oui, but all this buttering up makes me feel like I should.”

Harry grinned, offering his shoulder for Hedwig. “I think I’m going to sleep for a couple of hours. I can feel that dizziness returning.”

“I understand, Arry, rest well.”

* * *

Fleur kissed Harry on the cheek and walked out of his room, closing the door. Hedwig hopped off Harry’s shoulder and glided over to the perch that had been set up for her. Harry dropped onto the bed and fell back. Hedwig hooted softly, causing Harry to look up. “I’m trying to think about Hermione, thanks, Hedwig.”

Hedwig hooted again, this time more firmly, Harry sighed. “No, I’m not cheating on her, I’m just… exploring my options, I guess…” Harry offered making a waving motion with his hands.

Hedwig clicked her beak disapprovingly. “Yeah, I know, I could have phrased it better, but it’s not entirely my fault, Hermione hasn’t written once. I’m in France with a beautiful French Veela, who is into me, I think… and we’re soul-bound, should I wait all summer for Hermione to decide what she wants?”

Hedwig hooted, this time angrily. “Ok, I get it, I owe her the benefit of the doubt, she’s been there for me since we started Hogwarts and she’s never done wrong by me. I just wish I knew why she hasn’t written…”

Hedwig made a series of rapid hoots, flapping her wings, causing Harry to sit up on the bed. “Oh… uh, I guess I could write, couldn’t I…”

Hedwig turned her head sideways and hooted, and Harry gave her an indignant stare. “That was a rhetorical question… I don’t know a lot of Owls, but are they all as mouthy as you?”

Hedwig hooted again, plumping herself. Harry rolled his eyes as he slowly walked over to the desk near the window where Hedwig’s perch sat. He pulled a piece of parchment towards him and took a pen.

* * *

_Dear Hermione,_

Harry paused, staring at the parchment, suddenly he didn’t know what to write. He didn’t want to think about what would happen if Hermione wrote back to tell him she didn’t love him. But Harry knew he had to take that chance, and he had to know what happened.

_I don’t know if you wrote to me if you did, I didn’t get any of your letters. I wasn’t able to write to you because the Dursley’s locked Hedwig in her cage._

_Please don’t get upset, but I got attacked by Death Eaters ~_ Harry included a quick overview of the incident~ _, Fleur’s Mom saved me and now I’m staying with them in France. I asked Fleur to check on you after I woke up, but she said you weren’t home._

_I miss you… I hope you’re safe._

_~Harry_

* * *

Harry folded up the parchment and tied it to Hedwig’s leg. “Please find her.”

Hedwig nuzzled Harry’s face for a moment before leaving through the open window, flying off into the distance as Harry flopped back onto the bed and quickly fell asleep.

* * *

_Les Deux Alpes, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France_

_12 July 1995_

Hermione reached out and pushed the parchment of her potions essay away from her. She didn’t feel her usual zeal for studying, not when she couldn’t stop imagining Fleur and Harry together. She wanted to think the best of her boyfriend, but Fleur was difficult to deny. Her beauty was almost unnatural, and Harry had decided to spend his summer with her, not Hermione.

Hermione was brought out of her reverie by tapping on the glass balcony doors. Hermione gasped in shock when she spotted the familiar white plumage of Harry’s post owl. “Hedwig!”

Hermione burst through the doors and gave Hedwig a gentle hug, the Owl for her part leaned in and began grooming Hermione as the girl started to cry into her feathers. “I sent letters, I swear I did, but he never wrote back. And now he’s staying at Fleur’s... is he ok?”

Hedwig hooted and held out her leg once Hermione had let go and stepped back. She quickly untied the letter from her leg and ripped it open. “Death Eaters! Merlin, Harry, why did you take them on, on your own, oh of course, because you’re Harry Bloody Potter and have to do everything yourself!”

Hermione sat down on the chair next to the study desk and reviewed the letter for a second time. “Why wouldn’t Harry get my letters... unless he’s lying...” At that suggestion, Hedwig hooted indignantly. “Ok, so that’s not it, and you’re right I need to trust him more... but that means someone deliberately stopped my letters getting to Harry, but who...” Hermione’s shoulders sunk. “Who else could it be, it was the Headmaster, he told Harry multiple times he should date Ginny. Why does he care so much... maybe he doesn’t like Mugglesborn magicals as much as he lets on.” Hermione finished as she pulled a fresh piece of parchment towards her and grabbed a pen from the desk.

* * *

_Dear Harry,_

_I’m so glad you’re ok and safely away from those horrible relatives of yours._ ~ “I wish you’d picked somewhere Fleur Delacour wasn’t of course...” ~ _I think I know why you didn’t get any of my letters. Someone placed a re-direction ward on your relative’s house. It stopped you getting my mail. My main suspect is Professor Dumbledore, it could be Molly Weasley, but I don’t think she’d know how to do it. I don’t want to think ill of the Professor, but he’s been almost obsessed with pushing you and Ginny together._

_I’ve bundled my letters with this one, I still love you, Harry Potter, even though you make me crazy. I hope we can see each other soon._

_Love,_

_Hermione_

* * *

Hermione sealed the letter with a kiss and folded it up. She bundled together all the letters she’d written to Harry and tied them to Hedwig’s leg. “Please be careful on your way back to Harry, and keep an eye on him, he’s liable to fall hopelessly in love with Fleur...” Hermione urged Hedwig as the Owl gave Hermione a sympathetic hoot before flying away towards Paris.

* * *

Emma Granger entered the Chalet a couple of hours later, her face bright red from the sun and snow. She almost blinked in confusion when she spotted Hermione frantically scribbling away at her summer homework. The older woman smiled and walked over, stroking her daughter’s hair gently and applying a kiss to the back of her head. “I see you heard from Harry?”

Hermione looked up from her work. “How can you tell?”

“You’re not moping anymore, so come on, what did he say?”

Hermione handed her mother the letter Harry sent, Emma raised her eyebrow, but Hermione answered her question before she could ask. Emma sighed, rubbing her forehead. “Sometimes I wonder whether it was a good idea to send you to that school...”

Hermione dropped onto the bed beside her mother. “If you hadn’t, I wouldn’t have met Harry. That’s made everything that’s happened worth it.”

Emma sat in silence after that, staring at her daughter with a smile on her face. Hermione let the time pass while resting her head on her Mom’s shoulder before looking up and returning the smile. “What is it?”

Emma shook her head. “You remind me of myself at your age, and I was in love with your Dad long before he figured it out. I knew, even at your age that I’d found my soulmate. And from the way you talk about Harry, I think you have as well.”

Hermione nodded. “As long as Fleur doesn’t sink her claws into him...”

“Then you’ll just have to fight for your man, won’t you?”

Hermione grinned evilly. “Oh, yes.”

* * *

_Chateau Delacour,_ _Neuilly-sur-Seine, France_

_13 July 1995_

Fleur walked down to breakfast to find her mother perusing an English newspaper when Apolline looked up. She levelled an even stare at her daughter. “Flower, did you do anything besides retrieving Arry’s things when you visited his relatives?”

Fleur posed in mock contemplation. “No Maman, I can’t think of anything...”

Apolline shook her head, but Fleur could see a small smile on her lips. Apolline had read the reports compiled by the British DMLE; she could forgive her daughter this use of her heritage.

Harry descended into the dining room, smiling as he sat beside Fleur at the breakfast table. “Good morning Fleur, Madame Delacour.”

“Arry, if you keep calling me Madame Delacour, I will call start calling you Heir Potter, my name is Apolline.”

Harry raised his hands. “Ok, Apolline.”

“Very good,” Apolline replied, turning to Fleur. “You should keep ahold of this one Flower. He’s a quick learner.”

Fleur and Harry blushed as Apolline chuckled dropping the Surrey local paper in front of him. Harry stared slack-jawed at the front page, with his male relatives staring back at him under the headline.

_LOCAL MEN COMMITTED FOR MULTIPLE INCIDENTS OF PUBLIC LEWDNESS_

The paper went on detail about how Vernon and Dudley had been arrested outside their house naked and masturbating. They were given a warning and released, hours later they were taken in again for the same incident. After a third time, they were sent to a local psychiatric facility for evaluation. Petunia Dursley was quoted as seeking a lawyer to instigate divorce proceedings.

Harry slowly turned in his seat to face Fleur, who was playing with her hair absently. “Fleur... did you do this?”

Fleur shrugged. “I may have left them with the suggestion that needed to commit an act on themselves in view of the neighbours whenever they’re outside their house. It may have been because of how they treated you...”

Harry blushed and leaned over to kiss Fleur on the cheek. “Thank you.”

“You’re not angry?”

“I should be, but no, this is what they deserved, they were so obsessed with being normal. Now everyone knows they’re the freaks, that’s incredibly petty, but I don’t care.”

“Good, now put them from your mind,” Fleur advised picking up the paper and reducing it to ashes in her hand. “You’ll never have to interact with them ever again. Finish your breakfast, and we will depart for a full day of shopping.”

“I’m looking forward to it,” Harry replied with a smile.

“You may live to regret those words, my daughter’s shopping trips are legendary even among my mundane colleagues.”

“They exaggerate...” Fleur began, quickly adding. “Slightly,” when she received a pointed look from her mother.

As Harry ate, there was a flutter of pure white wings as Hedwig sailed into the house and landed on the table in front of Harry. Harry forced down the piece of toast he was eating and quickly collected the letters that were tied to Hedwig’s leg. “They’re from Hermione…”

“How did Hedwig get them?” Fleur asked, sounding confused and not entirely hiding the annoyance in her voice. Harry didn’t hear it, but Apolline did and sent a warning look to Fleur as she stood. “I will go wake Gabrielle, and then I have to depart for work.”

Harry tore open the top letter and unfolded it nervously, Fleur glanced at him over her tea, hiding her frown behind the cup. “What does it say?”

“Hermione is glad that I’m safe and she speculates that Professor Dumbledore may have put a mail re-direction ward on the Dursley’s house.”

“Why would he do that?” Fleur asked, putting the cup down, now genuinely interested.

Harry rubbed the back of his head. “Do you remember at the Yule Ball, I was called into the Headmaster’s office?” Harry asked, to which Fleur nodded. “He wanted to talk to me about my confrontation with Krum and about me asking you to the Ball. He thought because…” Harry took a deep breath. “Because you’re a French Veela that it wasn’t appropriate for you to accompany me. He thought I should have gone with Ginny Weasley, a nice pure-blood girl, from the right sort of family, at least according to him.”

“I see…” Fleur replied icily.

“I thought he was referring to me being the Boy-Who-Lived, but now I think he was talking about my status as the heir to the Potter Lordship, which he never told me about,” Harry explained bitterly. “I wanted to yell and tell him to mind his own business, but I knew that would only end with him giving me a disapproving glare, so I held my tongue.”

“The Headmaster seems obsessed with controlling your life…” Fleur observed.

Harry nodded. “I know, I just wish I knew why…”

* * *

_Les Boutiques Du Palais, Paris, France_

Harry dropped down onto a bench inside the Les Boutiques Du Palais mall. He was surrounded by bags and bags of new clothes and accessories Fleur had a bought for him and herself. Fleur laughed as she spun around, letting her cream summer dress flare out around her, drawing Harry’s and the eyes of every man in the vicinity to her long pale legs. “Merci mon amour, I haven’t had this much fun in a long time,” Fleur explained as she sat on the bench beside Harry, resting her head on his shoulder.

Harry smiled. “I never thought I’d have this much fun shopping for clothes but being with you made it interesting. I didn’t know there were this many choices, and I just wore whatever marginally fit and was the least torn up.”

“Not anymore, from now on you’ll only wear the nicest clothes, my boyfriend needs to look his best.”

“Fleur…” Harry admonished.

“Let’s pretend, just for a while you’re here with me?” Fleur asked. “Soon you’ll go back to your school and back to Hermione, but while you’re here we could pretend…”

Harry frowned working the idea over in his head. Harry loved Hermione, he felt very strongly about it, but he cared deeply for Fleur, he wanted to take care of her and make her happy. But he was with Hermione, he couldn’t betray her like that. “No, I’m sorry Fleur, I can’t, I care about you so much, but I love Hermione. That will never change.”

Fleur looked at the ground as tears welled in her eyes. “I understand...”

“I’m sorry, Fleur, I didn’t mean to upset you.”

Fleur shook her head, wiping away her tears. “I should apologise, I shouldn’t have asked that of you. I want more but I know I can’t, but at least I can be you friend. So, friend, I need you to help me pick out one last thing.”

Harry sighed playfully. “Ok, ok, where are we going?”

“Over here,” Fleur announced dragging him to a store named La Dame De Coeur (The Lady of the Heart).

Harry tugged on Fleur’s arm, pulling her back towards him. “Uh, Fleur, that’s a lingerie store…”

“Oui, I wanted you to help me pick out something you’d like to see me in,” Fleur replied with a saucy wink.

“Fleur!”

Fleur finally broke and began laughing. She kissed him on the tip of his nose again. “You’re so fun to tease, come along Sac Garcon, home we go.”

“Oui, Oui, Mademoiselle,” Harry replied in sarcastic French, Fleur skipped along in front of him, sticking her tongue out playfully.

* * *

_Chateau Delacour,_ _Neuilly-sur-Seine, France_

_14 July 1995_

The next day was entirely dedicated to Harry’s summer homework, Fleur and Apolline had allowed him the first couple of days off from studying given he was still recovering, and they wanted him to enjoy his time in France. But all three Delacour women was incredibly bright and dedicated to their studies, and they wouldn’t let Harry slack off all summer.

Fleur was a very able tutor and her rewards of hugs for every time Harry completed an assignment left the raven-haired young man very motivated to finish everything on time.

* * *

_15 July 1995_

The following day was a Saturday, Apolline was working late, and Gabrielle had gone to visit friends, so only Fleur and Harry were left in the house. Fleur stretched as they came to the end of one of Snape’s damnable Potions essays, Harry tried not to stare at the way Fleur’s stretching made her chest bludge. Fleur grinned and leaned down to meet Harry’s eyes. “See something you like, mon amour?”

Harry blushed and looked away. “No… maybe…”

Fleur giggled and stood up, offering Harry her hand. “Come on, let’s get dressed.”

“Dressed? For what?”

“I’ve arranged for us to go out tonight, first dinner and then we’re going to a club I know,” Fleur explained as she led them through the house to their respective bedrooms.

“Fleur, I’m fourteen, I won’t be allowed in,” Harry explained.

“It’s a mixed club, mundane and magical, trust me Arry, they’ll let _you_ in,” Fleur assured him, Harry still felt hesitant, but let Fleur drag him along anyway.

Harry emerged from his room in a button-down white shirt and a pair of black jeans with a black leather jacket over the top. While it was the start of the French Summer, the nights had been oddly cold so far. Harry paused at the door to his room when he spotted Fleur. She was dressed in a white corset and black mini skirt with black thigh-high boots and a white leather jacket. Fleur wore her hair down, and it flared out as she spun around for him. “Like it?”

“You look amazing…” Harry replied, trying to keep a handle on his hormones.

“Merci, Arry, Merci,” Fleur whispered breathily as she passed taking his hand and leading him out of the Chateau and away for their little adventure.

* * *

As the two ate, Harry noticed a small pendant that hung around Fleur’s neck, resting against her collar bone. Fleur smirked at him. “If you want to stare at my chest, Arry, you’ll need to be more subtle.”

“I’m not; actually, I was staring at the pendant you’re wearing, you were wearing it when we went out the other day,” Harry observed with a smile.

“Oh, you noticed,” Fleur replied, picking up the pendant in her fingers. “It was a gift from my Grandmother; it’s a small ward stone that is tuned specifically to the Allure Veela give out. I am in control of my powers, but this gives me extra protection, I only wear it when I’m out in the mundane world, men without magic are even less prepared to deal with my Allure than men with magic.”

* * *

After dinner, Fleur led Harry to a club called La Locomotive (A/N: Called La Machine Du Moulin Rouge as of 2010.) Harry could barely hear himself think over the thrumming techno music that made the place vibrate with life. Fleur pulled him close so she could lean into his ear. “I’ll be upstairs with some friends. You’re welcome to join us.”

Harry nodded and leaned into her. “I’ll stay down here for a while. I’ll join you soon.”

Harry gave Fleur a kiss on the cheek, eliciting glares from some of the nearby male patrons. Once Harry was alone, he walked up to the bar and ordered a coke, finding a nearby booth where he could watch the dancers and enjoy the music. He wasn’t much of a party person, even through the Quidditch celebrations that he was usually made the centre of by the Weasley twins he tried to duck out as quickly as he could and spend time with Hermione. Inevitably the Weasley’s would find him and drag him back in front of everyone for another round of embarrassment.

As Harry took a sip of his drink, a pair of beautiful young women, one with long blonde hair the other with a silver mane approached his table. The blonde with brown eyes in a white sleeveless crop top with a blue cross over the bust and a black mini skirt with black thigh high stockings and brown shoes smiled at Harry and leaned in, giving Harry a full view of her substantial bust. “Hi, can we sit with you, all the other tables are full?”

Harry nodded and motioned for the girls to sit down. They approached from either side of the booth, leaving Harry wedged between them. The blonde girl’s friend was just as busty with long silver hair, and sapphire blue eyes was dressed in a long black dress with a plunging neckline. She smiled prettily for Harry. “I’m Mira, my friend is Lucy, what are you drinking handsome?”

Harry blushed slightly. “Just coke.”

“Coke? That’s so boring. I need Jack Daniels with my coke, and you’ll join us, won’t you?” Lucy asked, waving at the bartender for attention, Harry tried to not stare at the way it made her chest shake.

Harry didn’t want to get in trouble for being underage in a nightclub and by extension get Fleur in trouble by saying he couldn’t drink because he was underage. Conversely, he didn’t want to look uncool in front of two hot girls, so he thought on his feet. “I shouldn’t. I have a big test coming up tomorrow. I need to keep my focus.”

“Test? School is out, that’s why we’re out tonight, we’re celebrating!” Lucy exclaimed, pumping the air with her fist.

“Oh, I go to cooking school, it has a different set of semesters to regular school,” Harry explained. He wasn’t lying either before Hogwarts culinary school was something, he’d considered attending because of all the things the Dursley’s made him do for them, cooking was his favourite. Harry was still weighing up whether he wanted to go to culinary school after Hogwarts. The last two years had soured Harry on magic, with only two exceptions and once he graduated, he wouldn’t have to choose between magic and staying friends or more with Hermione and Fleur.

“So,” Mira asked, letting her hand linger on Harry’s thigh. “Are you here alone?”

Harry stared down as someone brought over a pair of drinks for the girls. “I uh, I’m here with my girlfriend…”

“Oh, what a shame…” Mira replied, pouting slightly as she pulled her hand away. “But I admire your honesty, and most guys would have said they were alone, even if they were here with their girlfriend.”

“For that, you get a kiss,” Lucy added, leaning in to give Harry a peck on the cheek.

“Thank you for getting us drinks, Nick,” Mira said, Harry looked up and for the first time realised an older man had joined them with brown hair and grey eyes, he looked to be in his early twenties, he was sitting with the chair flipped around so that the back of the chair was in front of him.

“You’re welcome, hi, I’m Nick, I’m minding these two lovely ladies tonight.”

“Minding?”

Lucy rolled her eyes. “Someone we know thinks we need to have someone keep an eye on us… Stupid spoilsport…”

“Remember what happened that one-time Lucy…” Mira reminded her blonde friend.

“It was ONE TIME, Mira…”

Nick laughed into his drink as Fleur approached the table. “Arry, I’ve been waiting for you.”

Harry noticed Fleur’s jealous eyes roaming between Lucy and Mira as Mira moved to let him get up. Fleur interweaved her fingers with Harry’s. “I want you to meet my friends,” Fleur said, turning to face Harry’s new friends. “Thank you for keeping him company. It was nice meeting you.”

“Goodbye,” Harry said, giving them a wave as Fleur dragged him away.

* * *

Fleur pulled Harry up the stairs and towards a table crowded with a group of girls, some of whom he recognised as Fleur’s fellow Beauxbaton’s students. “Girls, you remember Arry?”

“It’s Fleur’s dreamboat,” One of the girls teased.

“Oh, shush,” Fleur replied, smacking the brown-haired girl on the shoulder.

Fleur led Harry to a chair near hers, and they both sat down. Harry quickly fell into a comfortable rhythm, Fleur’s friends were all brilliant, it made him think of Hermione, and how much he missed her now, he knew she’d written him every day before she left for her French holiday. Harry put that out of his mind and re-engaged in the conversation.

About an hour later, Harry heard Fleur swear under her breath. He followed her line of sight to a handsome boy with short blonde hair, and brown eyes walked into the upstairs bar. His eyes wandered the bar and lit up when he spotted Fleur. The other girls at the table visibly tensed when they realised who had appeared. The boy swept across the bar towards their table. “Bonjour Fleur, I didn’t know you’d be here tonight, I’m amazed you stayed away for so long.”

“Bonjour Gaspard, I’m not here because of you, I’m here with friends.”

Gaspard spotted Harry and sneered. “I didn’t know you were babysitting as well.”

Harry rose from his seat and stuck out his hand. “Harry Potter, Fleur’s boyfriend.”

Gaspard faltered as Fleur stared at him, wide-eyed, but he reapplied his sneer and shook Harry’s hand. “Gaspard Malfoy.”

Harry smirked. “Malfoy, so you’re related to Draco and Lucius.”

Gaspard snorted a laugh. “Please, we disowned that side of our family long ago, they’re an embarrassment.”

“I see… How do you know Fleur?”

“We used to date. I didn’t realise Fleur had moved on…”

Fleur glared at him. “You’re the one who moved on, and you found another girl to spend time with, without telling me or her first.”

“A man has to keep his options open. How can I be a good boyfriend if I don’t practice…?”

Harry scowled but chose not to speak. He couldn’t have a go at the guy when he was pretending to be Fleur’s boyfriend while dating Hermione. “I would ask if you wanted to join us, but Fleur and I were about to leave.”

“We were?” Asked a surprised Fleur.

“Yeah, plenty of Parisian nightlife left to explore, it was a pleasure seeing you again ladies,” Harry said as he gave them a bow, he then took Fleur’s hand in his and led her away and out of the club.

Gaspard watched them go with a scowl on his face. He hadn’t been able to go to Scotland for the Tri-Wizard’s tournament because of commitments elsewhere. But if Gaspard had, he would never have let Harry Potter near Fleur. She was his. He’d already made his claim on the Veela. But Gaspard was a patient man, and there would be plenty of opportunities to put Fleur in his bed.

* * *

Fleur and Harry ducked into a nearby ally which was used as an apparition point for magicals that frequented the club. Once they were safely inside the Chateau Fleur finally relaxed. Harry led her through and into the dining room, a couple of minutes later, he returned with a pot of tea and a blanket.

“Merci, Arry, you are a sweetheart,” Fleur observed as she wrapped the blanket around her shoulders. “I’m sorry you had to pretend to be my boyfriend, I know that’s something you didn’t want.”

“I noticed how uncomfortable he made you, so I figured he’d back off if he knew there was someone there who would defend your honour.”

“Gaspard being my boyfriend was not one of my brighter decisions. He was a womaniser long before we started dating, and I was warned by many girls in the years above and below me about his personality. But I was overconfident in my Veela abilities. Gaspard knows how to talk girls into doing what he wants, he’s very practised at it, and he almost charmed me into doing things I wasn’t prepared for emotionally. When I wouldn’t perform for him, he found another girl who would.”

Fleur took a sip of her tea and smiled. “Magnifique, most people have this misconception that because Veela are sexual creatures, we are sluts. I am not a slut, I am comfortable with who I am, and I enjoy my sexuality, but I will not give myself to someone who I don’t think is worthy of my time. I am not a virgin Arry,” Fleur announced, which made Harry blush. “But I will _not_ put out for anyone who asks.”

“Anyone who doesn’t understand that isn’t worthy of your time Fleur,” Harry replied.

Fleur smiled, reaching out to stroke his face. “I’m glad you understand that Arry. For the record, you are one of those boys who I would deem worthy, but only once you’re sixteen. But even if you were sixteen, you wouldn’t be getting any tonight, because you were flirting with those girls.”

“Hey, they were flirting with me, and I told them I had a girlfriend!” Harry protested.

Fleur frowned crossing her arms. “When I got to the table, I couldn’t see any hands, how do I know you didn’t wander?”

“Fleur, I, I... you’re teasing me again, aren’t you?”

Fleur giggled and kissed Harry on the nose. “Oui, but only because it’s so much fun and you’re so cute when you’re flustered. Goodnight Arry.”

“Goodnight Fleur...”

* * *

_Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft, Scotland_

_16 July 1995_

The Headmaster’s floo flared to life with green flames as Albus Dumbledore returned from holiday. He moved around his desk and smiled as he observed a pile of letters from Miss Granger to young Harry on the desk. He counted and realised that she’d stopped sending mail to Harry a few days before. He threw some Floo powder into the heath after checking the time. “The Burrow,” he paused a beat. “Good morning Molly, I wanted to check in and hear how Ginny was getting on with Young Harry.”

_“It’s not Albus. We haven’t heard from Harry since the summer holidays started. I even sent Arthur over to his relatives, but they just yelled at my Arthur and sent him away. Something about Harry not being there anymore... did you have Harry moved Albus?”_

Dumbledore paled and turned to look over at the devices he used to monitor Harry only to find them all silent. “No, I didn’t, I will let you know what’s happening later, thank you, Molly.”

Dumbledore dismissed the Floo call without hearing Molly’s response. He was about to throw more Floo in the fireplace when Snape burst into the room. “Dumbledore, good you’ve returned, I need to speak to you about Lucius...”

Dumbledore waved his hand at Snape. “Severus, I don’t have time to hear about Lucius’s issues with me, we have a more serious problem. We will speak when I return.”

Dumbledore made a swishing motion with his wand and transfigured his clothes into a green suit with pink piping and an orange shirt with a blue and red polka-dot tie. Snape resisted the urge to shield his eyes as Dumbledore departed.

* * *

_Privet Drive, Surrey_

Dumbledore hurried down the street from Arabella Fig’s house to the Dursley residence. He knocked hurriedly on the door, and Petunia answered. “Another Freak! What do you want?!” She screeched.

Dumbledore gave Petunia a kind smile as their eyes met and his Occulmency activated. He hurriedly searched Petunia’s memories and found out how the house had been attacked by Death Eaters, followed by visits from both Fleur Delacour and Hermione Granger. Dumbledore swore to himself when he realised that instead of being pushed into the arms of Ginny Weasley, Harry was now living with Fleur Delacour and her politically influential family.

“Nothing, thank you,” Dumbledore replied and left.

Dumbledore reappeared minutes later and sat down, hurriedly scribbling our a note and summoning a school owl. Snape stood in front of his desk with his arms crossed. “Is now a good time to talk about Lucius?”

“No Severus, it’s not, I am now fully aware of what happened to Lucius, and I have no inclination to help him. His blundering has pushed young Harry into the arms of the Delacour family. That could be trouble,” Dumbledore explained, sending a pointed look to Snape. “For _all_ of us.”

“I see...”

* * *

A few hours later Nymphadora Tonks and Remus Lupin we’re stood in front of Dumbledore’s desk. “Thank you for coming at such short notice. I have grave concerns for young Harry Potter’s safety. He’s gone to France for the summer to stay with young Miss Delacour. He did this without consulting me, and I am concerned about his safety. I need you to talk to young Harry and convince him to come home.”

“But if Harry’s at the Delacour’s he’s very safe, safer than he was at his relatives anyway!” Tonks protested.

“If young Harry had stayed where he was, he would have been perfectly fine. There was no need for him to do what he did. I am deeply troubled by the fact that he has gone chasing after young Miss Delacour, I feel he’s letting his hormones rule his head. Miss Weasley and her mother are genuinely concerned.”

“Have you spoken to Sirius about this?” Remus asked.

“I think we should leave Sirius to his treatment and deal with this before he returns,” Dumbledore argued.

“Yes, of course, you’re right,” Remus replied.

“I have arranged your travel documents. You may leave immediately.”

Tonks glanced at Remus and shook her head, walking down the stairs. Once she was gone, Dumbledore returned his gaze to Remus, handing him a pen. “This is a Portkey to a safe house in Paris. Once you have Young Harry, press down on the top, and it will activate. Do not wait for Miss Tonks. I will deal with the fallout.”

Remus nodded and stashed the Portkey in his coat as he walked downstairs. When he reached the bottom, Tonks was waiting. “We’re just going to talk to him, right?”

“Of course, why?”

“I’m not sure I trust the Headmaster, why doesn’t he just go himself?”

“Professor Dumbledore is very busy, Tonks, he can’t be running all over the world taking care of one boy.”

“I don’t like it, we should just leave Harry alone, so what if he’s running around chasing after hot French Veela, he’s fourteen, he’s allowed to be a teenager.”

“Professor Dumbledore said he’s in danger, that’s good enough for me.”

Tonks shook her head. “I need to go pack a day bag. I’ll meet you at the international Portkey terminal.”

* * *

_Apartment of Nymphadora Tonks, London, England_

Tonks scowled as she shut the door to her apartment, she’d thought it would be great to work for Albus Dumbledore, the so-called ‘greatest wizard since Merlin’ but now she was bothering a kid on his holiday. Even Harry Potter deserved to be a teenage boy and chase skirts. If Tonks was honest, she was a bit jealous. She’d never been allowed to chase French Veela when she was at school. And she would have if she could.

That wasn’t the only thing that bothered Tonks; she felt an uneasiness in her gut had set in after Lupin emerged into the corridor. It was his eyes. They looked shifty his body language had changed since the meeting only two minutes earlier. She didn’t like it or him...

Crossing to the fireplace that was set up for Floo calls, she threw a pinch of powder into the heath and knelt. “The Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Office of Madam Bones...”

* * *

_Paris, France_

_17 July 1995_

Harry and Fleur were out to lunch after touring both the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre, which Harry had never seen before. Fleur was enjoying playing tour guide to her pretend boyfriend for the day. As the couple left the restaurant, they ducked into a side street, where they realised, they were being followed. They quickened their pace trying to get back to the main thoroughfare when a man with greying brown hair popped out of an ally in front of them.

“Hello, Harry.”

Harry stepped forward, putting Fleur between them as Nymphadora Tonks approached from the other end of the street. “Hello, Professor.”

“Harry, I’m not your Professor anymore, you can call me Moony, that’s what your Dad called me when he was alive.” Remus offered.

“Is there a reason you’re here, sir?”

Remus frowned. “Harry, you’re angry. Why?”

“I knew someone would be along eventually to take me back to the Dursley’s. I’m angry; it’s you. You were Sirius and my Dad’s best friends, and now you’re reduced to being a lackey for the Headmaster. He’s not my Guardian anymore, Sirius is, he can’t dictate where I go or what I do outside school.”

“Harry, Sirius had a horrible experience in Azkaban...”

“And whose fault is that Dumbledore...” Harry bit back cutting Remus off.

“Headmaster Dumbledore, Harry,”

“Dumbledore knew or at least suspected Sirius was innocent, but he let him rot, why? Have you ever asked?”

“I’m sure the Headmaster did all he could for Sirius...”

“I doubt it.”

Remus scowled, his eyes darting from Harry to Fleur. He was convinced now more than ever that Fleur was a bad influence on Harry and he needed to be back in England where they could keep an eye on him. “Harry, enough, it’s time to come home. This little act you’re putting on isn’t impressing anyone.”

“I think it’s impressive,” Fleur commented with a smirk. Harry threw a grin back at her before facing Remus again. “No, and you can’t make me.”

Remus’s face darkened. “I was asking, now I’m telling you, we’re going home, now.”

“I am a guest of the Delacour’s, and I will leave when summer is over, or they ask me to leave. You don’t have any authority over me, and you can’t make me do anything I don’t want to. Unless you intend to use force.”

“Don’t make me do this, Harry...” Remus warned.

“Goodbye, Mister Lupin,” Harry replied, moving to slip past the older man.

“Harry!” Remus yelled, trying to grab Harry by the arm, only to be met by a right fist to the jaw. He staggered back slightly, clutching at his mouth as a trickle of blood ran from his now split lip. “Damn it, Tonks, stun them, we’ll figure it out later!”

Tonks did have her wand drawn, but she wasn’t pointing it at Harry or Fleur, she was pointing it at Remus. In the instance between grabbing Harry and getting punched by the said boy, a group of French Aurors, Madam Bones, Andromeda Tonks, and Madame Delacour had appeared. Remus swore to himself as he eyed off the wands pointed at him.

“Hand over your wand Mister Lupin, you are under arrest for attempted kidnapping,” Apolline ordered.

“Yes, of course...” Remus replied, reaching into his coat, seconds later, he was gone as he activated the Portkey.

Apolline Delacour swore as she stepped into the space, Remus had occupied seconds earlier. She turned to Tonks who had handed her wand to Madam Bones. “A Portkey can’t cross an ocean unless it’s specifically charmed to do so, he must still be in France. Auror Tonks, did they tell you they’d be using a safe house?”

“No, Ma’am, they said we were here to _talk_ to Harry. I thought Lupin might try to grab him. I didn’t think he’d use a Portkey.”

“It’s fine Auror Tonks, I should have thought of that, let’s return to the Chateau, and we can begin the de-brief. Aurors, tap your sources, I want Remus Lupin found!”

“Yes, Ma’am!”

* * *

_Elsewhere..._

Remus Lupin slumped down in a chair pulling a scrap of parchment towards him. He extracted the memory of the event out of his head and put it in a vial. He wrapped it in the parchment on which he’d written a note.

_We have a problem..._

**To Be Continued...**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you’re wondering and you’re not a fan, Lucy and Mira are jumping in for a cameo appearance from Fairy Tail. They appear for two important reasons, they’re both exceedingly hot, and they’re both wizards. I want to do a Fairy Tail crossover at some point. I’m just not sure if it’ll be a Harry Potter or Yu-Gi-Oh! Because both stories in my head have pretty much the same plot idea.
> 
> I intended to leave Hermione out of this chapter but partly in response to the reviews of the last chapter I made a small change.
> 
> I may take a couple of weeks to post the next update, I have something else I need to work on, and after that, I will return to Dance Macabre, AND THEN I will write the next chapter of this. I can’t say what I’m working on; next, you’ll see it in November.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Harry Potter Franchise or its characters. All characters used are the property of their respective owners.
> 
> This story is rated M for violence, language, & sexual themes.
> 
> Special Thanks to Sakubato, who is my Alpha on this story.
> 
> This story is a Horcrux free zone.
> 
> Warning: Manipulative Dumbledore & Weasley Bashing (Ron, Molly, & Ginny.)
> 
> Note: I decided to write a short chapter, partly to advise anyone reading this I have made some small changes to the last chapter.
> 
> After people’s comments and consulting with my Alpha, I have removed the ‘pretend girlfriend’ aspect. There was no logical or right way out of it. My bad, I didn’t think it through.

_Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft, Scotland_

_Headmaster’s Office_

_17 July 1995_

Dumbledore peered over his fingers at Severus Snape, and he was frowning. Snape had just recounted the story of how he’d supplied Lucius Malfoy with the address of Harry Potter’s relatives. Dumbledore sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I wasn’t aware of how angry Lucius had become. You should have discouraged this course of action.”

“Potter would have been well served with a lesson in humility, and if you were to negotiate his freedom, you would’ve had the boy’s gratitude...”

“Regardless of your intentions, Severus, that is not how events unfolded. Young Harry is now living in the home of the Delacour’s. I have faith in Remus, but every minute Young Harry is with them is a minute more than I am comfortable with.”

“I have no faith in Lupin, the man has no spine,” Snape observed.

“Be that as it may...” Dumbledore began before being interrupted by an Owl landing on his desk. Dumbledore relieved it of its package, and it flew away. Dumbledore looked at the note and let out a breath through his nose. “Remus failed.”

Dumbledore waved his wand and summoned his pensive placing it on the desk. He poured Remus’s memory into the bowl, and the two dived in. A few minutes later, they surfaced, and Snape almost had a smirk on his face. “I’ve wanted to do that to Lupin for many years, and I’m almost jealous Potter beat me to it.”

Dumbledore glared at Snape as he put the pensive away. “I don’t find that funny Severus. I am genuinely concerned about this independent streak Young Harry has developed. Both Miss Granger and Miss Delacour are bad influences on him, and I do not know how to mitigate their influence.”

“We could simply eliminate them…” Snape suggested with a vicious sneer.

“…That is an unacceptable option, for the moment. Killing those girls would alienate Young Harry further, we a simple way to control him.”

“We could potion the boy,” Snape suggested.

Dumbledore sat back in his chair and pondered Severus’s suggestion for a few minutes before speaking again. “Go on…”

* * *

_Chateau Delacour,_ _Neuilly-sur-Seine, France_

Fleur knocked on the door to Harry’s room, and he looked up from his parchment. “Oh, hi, Fleur.”

“Hello, Arry, were you ok?”

Harry leaned back in his chair as Fleur walked over, wrapping her arms around his shoulders, resting her head in the nook of his neck. “I guess, Lupin was a friend of my Dad and Godfather, but now he just blindly does whatever Dumbledore tells him. I’m glad the Headmaster’s rubbish didn’t pull in Tonks. I wish Lupin weren’t so blind.”

“What do you think made him that way?”

“Lupin is a werewolf, despite that he was allowed to attend Hogwarts at the behest of Dumbledore. I can’t say for sure, but I think Lupin has felt indebted to Dumbledore ever since. He believes everything Dumbledore tells him, including that I was safe when I was young and living at the Dursley’s.”

Fleur scowled and resumed her full height. “That he didn’t push to be able to take care of you is a black mark against him in my book.”

Harry smiled and turned around to look at Fleur. “Mine too.”

Fleur peered over Harry to the desk. “Are you writing Hermione?”

Harry nodded. “I’m almost finished replying to her letters. I hope she’ll understand why I haven’t written since I sent my reply to her first letter. I wanted to make sure I replied to everything.”

Fleur kissed Harry on the cheek. “You’re a good boyfriend, Harry.”

“I’m trying to be…” He replied. (A/N: Despite my best attempts to make him not a good boyfriend…)

“The reason I came up to see you, Madam Bones, Missus Tonks, and my Mother are waiting for you downstairs. They’ve finished discussing how best to protect you going forward.”

Harry nodded and walked with Fleur downstairs, where Amelia Bones, Andromeda and Nymphadora Tonks, and Apolline were waiting for him. “Thank you for your patience Arry, please have a seat.”

Harry sat down at the dining table, facing the three older women, with Tonks and Fleur either side. “We’ve discussed our options, we would prefer to arrest Headmaster Dumbledore, but without Mister Lupin we can’t prove he was involved.” Bones explained.

“I have my Aurors searching for him, and the moment we have him in custody we will give him a dose of vertiaserum and then proceed against Albus Dumbledore,” Apolline added.

“Tell them to be careful, Remus Lupin is a werewolf. He’s abnormally strong, and I don’t want to see anyone hurt on my behalf.”

Apolline gave Harry a gentle smile. “Noted.”

“Until then, with the agreement of Madame Delacour, I will be assigning Auror Tonks as your bodyguard until at least the end of Summer.”

“What happens after that, does Arry go back to Hogwarts like nothing’s happened?! Dumbledore wants Arry under his thumb, and you’re going to let him!”

“Fleur, please calm down, while my Aurors search for Mister Lupin, Missus Tonks has launched a search for Lord Black. Once he is safe, we can discuss Harry’s schooling,” Apolline assured her daughter firmly.

Fleur nodded and sat down, grabbing Harry’s hand as Andromeda spoke. “I am as unhappy with Harry’s situation as you are Miss Delacour. But I am only Sirius’s proxy, and there is only so far my influence can extend. There are too many competing forces within the Wizengamot for me to move a motion to be named Harry’s Guardian. Only a letter with the Black seal would allow me to take Guardianship and make decisions about Harry’s schooling.”

“Do I get a say in this?” Harry asked.

“Of course, I just assumed you’d want to change schools.”

“I do, but not if I’m leaving Hermione behind. Too many people at Hogwarts want to hurt her. I won’t go somewhere else if it means that Hermione might get hurt. If that means going back to Hogwarts so be it.” Harry stated firmly.

The three older women glanced between each other before returning their gaze to Harry. “Ok, we’ll figure this out. Our priority is your safety, and by extension Miss Granger’s safety.”

“Are you all doing this because I’m the boy-who-lived?”

Bones stopped and stared Harry in the eyes. “No, we’re doing this because you’re in danger. As law enforcement officer’s Madame Delacour and I are tasked with protecting the innocent. You’ve been manipulated and abused since you were a toddler, we are going to end it. I have taken a personal interest in the case because Auror Tonks contacted me and Andromeda asked. I would have regardless because Lily was a dear friend, and I was James’s supervisor when he became an Auror. I miss them, and I should have done something to make sure you were ok when your parents died, but I like everyone else blindly trusted Dumbledore. That is not a mistake I will repeat.”

Harry nodded, and the women except Fleur left. She placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. “Are you ok, Arry?”

Harry shrugged. “I guess, it’s a weird feeling to have people looking out for you, I’ve spent so many years looking out for myself, I don’t know how to react.”

“You don’t have to react, Arry, we’re not doing this for a reward, aside from the satisfaction of helping someone we care about. We won’t let Dumbledore hurt you, you are safe here, and you will continue to be as long as I am involved in your life.”

Harry gave Fleur a watery smile and stood up. “Thank you, Fleur, I’m going to go upstairs to finish my letters to Hermione.”

* * *

An hour later, Harry looked up as Amelia Bones knocked on the door of his room. “Forgive me, Harry, I didn’t mean to eavesdrop earlier, but I heard you say to Fleur that you were writing letters to Miss Granger. I wanted to suggest that instead of sending them by Owl, I could deliver them. Madame Delacour and I have decided I should visit the Granger family and discuss alternative education arrangements that align with your desire to leave Hogwarts.”

Harry nodded as a small smile crossed his lips. “After four years of Trolls, Basilisks, werewolves, Dragons, and Malfoy’s, I think Hermione would happily change schools.”

“That is our hope as well. So, if you’re finished, you can give them to me, and I will take them to Miss Granger.”

Harry nodded and gathered the letters on his desk and gave them to Amelia. “Um, Ma’am, if it’s not a rude question, what do you plan on doing about Susan. She’s been nice to me when we have classes together, so I was curious.”

Amelia nodded and smiled. “Thank you for your concern, Harry, I haven’t decided yet. I need to go home and talk to Susan. I suspect in the same way you won’t leave Hogwarts without Miss Granger, Susan won’t leave without Hannah Abbott. They are close.”

“I noticed. Susan is close with Daphne Greengrass as well.”

“I’ve been friends with her parents since we were at Hogwarts, Lily and Evangeline were three years below me and in different houses, but we still bonded. I’ll be honest. I wasn’t keen when Lily started dating James. I thought he was an arrogant Gryffindor bully…”

“M-my dad was a bully?” Harry asked, sounding shocked.

Amelia let out a breath. “Oh, no one told you about that… Let me preface this by saying that by the time James married Lily, he was a different person. He was kind and funny, but before he started dating your Mum, he was an arrogant bully, he inhabited the worst traits of Gryffindor. He was particularly vicious when it came to Severus Snape; they hated each other.”

“Because Professor Snape knew my Mum when they were little?”

“I… didn’t know that, but that would explain a lot. Your father and Sirius Black hated Slytherin, but this was at a time where Death Eaters were actively recruited from all four houses.”

“And Dumbledore did nothing to stop it, of course.”

“No, for some reason Dumbledore has held forgiveness above all else, even in the face of malicious cruelty. I never did and never will understand his point of view.”

“Same here,” Harry replied.

As Amelia turned to leave, Harry called her back. “Please give Hermione my love.”

* * *

_Les Deux Alpes, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France_

_18 July 1995_

Emma looked up from Chalet phone to Hermione, who was staring out the window into the ski fields, clearly waiting for a reply to her letters to Harry. “Hermione, do you know someone named Amelia Bones?”

Hermione turned around and frowned. “Susan Bones is one of my fellow students at Hogwarts, and Madam Bones is her Aunt and the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement for the Ministry of Magic. Why?”

“She’s at the front desk and asking to see us.”

Hermione’s eyes widened. “This has to be about Harry!”

Hermione snatched her coat off the hat stand and sprinted out of the Chalet and ran down to the reception building. Once inside, she spotted a beautiful woman with greying red hair that she immediately recognised as being related to Susan Bones. “Madam Bones?”

“Yes, are you Hermione Granger?”

“Yes, Ma’am, is Harry ok?”

“He’s fine, he sends his love, and these letters,” Amelia responded, handing Hermione the bundle she’d received from Harry.

Hermione’s eyes lit up as she carefully plucked the letters out of Amelia’s hands as Emma entered. “Good evening.”

“Good evening Missus Granger, I am Amelia Bones, the…” Amelia paused, glancing around. “Can we go somewhere more private?”

Emma nodded, indicating that Amelia should follow. The three walked back to the Chalet as Hermione eagerly poured over Harry’s first letter, which stated that the following pages contained individual responses to each of her previous letters and that was why he’d taken his time to reply to her.

Once they were inside and seated, Amelia picked up from earlier. “I am the Director of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. We serve as a magical police force for the Ministry of Magic. Yesterday Harry Potter was the victim of a kidnapping attempt by Remus Lupin…”

“Professor Lupin tried to kidnap Harry?!”

“He’s no longer a Professor, Miss Granger, but yes, we believe he was acting on behalf of Headmaster Dumbledore, but we can’t confirm that as Mister Lupin escaped using a Portkey.”

“I’m glad that Harry is safe, but what does that have to do with my daughter?” Emma asked.

“We’re trying to convince Mister Potter that returning to Hogwarts is not a wise idea, given Headmaster Dumbledore’s unhealthy obsession with him. He refuses as long as Miss Granger is still attending. I’m here to ask whether you’d consider withdrawing Hermione from Hogwarts and allowing her to attend whatever school Mister Potter is attending?”

Emma glanced at Hermione, who stared at her mother with her best pleading expression. “It’s worth discussing. My main priority is Hermione’s safety and happiness, if Hermione is safe at another school and happy because she can attend with Harry, I am willing to go along with it.”

A wide grin broke over Hermione’s face as she hugged her mother. Amelia smiled and nodded. “I will inform Mister Potter, and once we find Lord Black, we will discuss the next step. I suggest you visit the Delacour’s once you’ve finished your holiday. I think Mister Potter will be quite pleased to see you.”

“Can we Mum?” Hermione asked.

Emma sighed and gave a small laugh. “I suppose we can visit your boyfriend on our way home.”

Hermione blushed. “Thank you.”

* * *

_International Confederation of Wizards Headquarters, The Hague, Netherlands_

_Courtroom 1_

_19 July 1995_

“Please rise, the International Confederation of Wizards versus Lucius Malfoy is in session, Chief Judge Babajide Akingbade presiding.”

The was a shuffling of feet echoed off the walls of the cavernous dark wood panelling, as the members of the ICW rose as the Chief Judge entered. “Be seated, Lucius Malfoy, you have been charged with casting an Unforgivable Curse on the Director of the Bureau de la Justice Magique, how do you plead?”

Lucius glanced at his lawyer, who nodded. “Not guilty.”

“Chief Prosecutor begin your case.”

“Thank you, Chief Judge, I submit the memory of Apolline Delacour for review.”

Over the next hour after a viewing of Apolline’s memory, the Chief Prosecutor questioned Apolline and her guards about the validity of the memory and their interpretation of events. Finally, it was time for Lucius to be questioned. Unlike in Britain, he couldn’t hide behind Pureblood ideology to protect him from being asked questions under veritaserum.

“Is your name Lucius Malfoy?”

“Yes.”

“Are you a Death Eater?”

“Yes.”

“Were you a Death Eater during the British Blood War?”

“Yes.”

“Were you ever held under the Imperious Curse to commit acts of violence against Muggles or Muggle-born witches and wizards?”

“No.”

A rumble of disconcerted voices echoed around the chamber as many eyes were drawn to Dumbledore, who was sitting in on today’s session as an observer. Much to his chagrin, the roles of Supreme Mugwump and Chief Judge were left separate in the ICW, despite his efforts to change it. He knew he couldn’t interfere, but that meant Severus would be in trouble.

The Chief Prosecutor picked up a small bag from the desk behind her. “Is this your wand?”

“Yes.”

“Chief Judge, I submit the wand of Lucius Malfoy into evidence, I request that Prior Incantato be cast on it to reveal the last spell used.”

“So, ordered.”

The Chief Prosecutor handed the wand off to a member of the ICW staff who walked to the centre of the room and cast the spell. A smoky incantation rose from Malfoy’s wand, proving once and for all that the last spell used was the Cruciatus Curse.

“Mister Malfoy, who told you where Harry Potter lives?”

“Severus Snape.”

The Chief Prosecutor glanced up into the crowd, zeroing in on Dumbledore. “Did you coerce the information out of Mister Snape?”

“No.”

“Is Severus Snape a Death Eater?”

“Yes.”

“Was he ever held under the Imperious Curse to commit acts of violence against Muggles or Muggle-born witches and wizards?”

“No.”

“Who recruited Severus Snape into the ranks of the Death Eaters?”

“I did.”

“Why did Supreme Mugwump Dumbledore vouch for Mister Snape?”

“Severus pretended to be a spy for Dumbledore, but he was always loyal to the Dark Lord.”

“Are you loyal to the Dark Lord, also known as Voldemort?”

“Yes.”

A scowling Chief Judge banged his gavel. “Enough, apply the antidote, and then we will vote,” He ordered as he turned to Dumbledore. “Supreme Mugwump Dumbledore, Severus Snape is in your employ as a potions Professor, are you aware of his location?”

Dumbledore stood. “No Chief Judge, Professor Snape, left on holiday while I was away, he did not leave an estimated time for his return. I suggest after this it is unlikely he will return to Hogwarts after today.”

“Chief Judge I suggest we issue a red notice for Severus Snape, based on Mister Malfoy’s evidence he is involved in this attempt on Harry Potter’s life.”

“I agree, make it so.”

* * *

_Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft, Scotland_

_Headmaster’s Office_

_20 July 1995_

Dumbledore swore to himself as he stepped through the floo into his office at Hogwarts. Lucius Malfoy had been convicted and sentenced to life in prison. And now there was a red notice out for Severus, which meant no matter where he went if he stepped foot in an ICW affiliated country he would be arrested on sight. Luckily, Dumbledore had already planned for this, and by the time he arrived in the Netherlands, Snape had left Britain. As Dumbledore sat down at his desk, there was a knock at his door. He called for the person to enter as he pinched a Lemon drop from its container. “Good afternoon Albus.”

“Good afternoon Minerva, how are preparations for the new school year going?”

“Not as well as I’d hoped, I find myself in need of a new fifth-year female Prefect. Miss Granger has turned down the role.”

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow. “That is surprising, did she give a reason why?”

“Yes, she is planning to change schools.”

Dumbledore’s jaw dropped open as he stared at McGonagall in shock. “B-but, she can’t, where else would she go…?”

McGonagall’s eyes widened slightly in shock at Dumbledore’s outburst. “I’m sure that is for Miss Granger and her family to decide, don’t you?”

Dumbledore slumped back in his chair. “Yes, of course. Thank you, Minerva.”

As McGonagall walked out of Dumbledore’s office, he called her back. “Minerva, I will be unavailable for a few days, please handle things in my absence.”

“Where will you be?”

“All I can say is this is of vital importance, and I must attend to it personally.”

McGonagall sighed. “Very well…”

* * *

_Outside Paris, France_

_Sometime later…_

Severus Snape dropped a plate of food in front of Remus Lupin. “I refuse to eat this swill…”

Remus glanced up at Snape and smiled. “I asked if you wished to cook Severus, you said no. The only one to blame for this is you…”

Snape opened his mouth to speak when the door to the cottage opened, and Dumbledore entered. “Albus, I didn’t expect to see you.”

“It wasn’t my intention to see you either Severus, but circumstances have forced my hand.”

This got the attention of both men. “Miss Granger has sent a notice to Minerva that she wishes to change schools.”

Snape raised an eyebrow. “So, I don’t see how that affects us.”

Remus rolled his eyes. “Use your brain Severus, Hermione Granger is loyal to Harry to an almost obscene extent. She wouldn’t change schools unless Harry were too.”

“If you hadn’t failed miserably…” Snape hissed turning on the were-man.

“ENOUGH!” Dumbledore yelled. “It isn’t the time for that now, Severus, I was hesitant to indulge your potions idea a few days ago, however, given current circumstances I feel it is now our only choice. We have to act soon, or our entire world could be consumed in darkness. Begin your preparations. I will bring someone who can purchase potion ingredients here shortly.”

“Yes, Dumbledore.”

**To Be Continued…**


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Harry Potter Franchise or its characters. All characters used are the property of their respective owners.
> 
> This story is rated M for violence, language, & sexual themes.
> 
> A Special Thanks to my Alpha on this story Sakubato.
> 
> This story is a Horcrux free zone.
> 
> Warning: Manipulative Dumbledore & Weasley Bashing (Ron, Molly, & Ginny.)

_Outside Paris, France_

_20 July 1995_

“Ah, good morning Severus, how are you settling in?” Dumbledore asked as he entered the kitchen of the cottage safe house.

“I am fine Headmaster, and the lodgings are… adequate, I am glad you were able to make arrangements for me to come here before the Aurors came looking for me.”

“Good, good, you won’t be here for long, once we have young Harry pacified, I will make every effort to rescind the Red Notice against you.”

Snape resisted snorting a laugh; Potter had grown a big head over the previous school year, he didn’t think it would be quick or easy to quell that rebellious streak. The only way to do it in his opinion was through the potion he’d devised. But Dumbledore was still reluctant to go that course, but Severus was sure he would come around eventually.

As Dumbledore left, Snape spoke. “You don’t seem bothered by the revelations of Lucius’s trial. Aren’t you worried I will return to the Dark Lord’s side?”

“I have faith that you will keep your word, Severus, lest young Harry finds out who betrayed his parents. And if you were to stray, I would simply turn you into the Aurors.”

“You would risk me spilling your secrets?”

Dumbledore graced Snape with a kind smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “It would not get that far.”

Snape felt a cold chill run down his spine. He recalled how quickly Dumbledore had removed Black from Potter’s life and he knew the older man had friends among the Aurors, friends that would go to considerable lengths to protect him. Snape sat back down, staring at his food. Dumbledore’s genial demeanour returned as he gave Snape a small wave. “I will be back in a few hours with Molly, Ginny, and Ronald Weasley, please make an effort to tidy the cottage, they will be with us for a while.”

* * *

_Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport_

Hermione and Emma emerged into Charles de Gaulle Airport’s arrivals terminal, and Hermione’s eyes lit up. She dropped her bags and ran over to Harry, wrapping him in a hug and crushing her lips against his. Harry wrapped his arms around Hermione and cupped the back of her head. A minute later, they came up for air sharing identical dazzling smiles as Tonks stood to the side with a goofy grin on her face. Emma, who had collected Hermione’s bags, walked up, and she noticed a beautiful blonde girl standing to the side staring at them with a scowl on her face. The girl caught sight of Emma and arranged her features into a passive expression as she approached Hermione’s Mum. “Bonjour, I am Fleur Delacour. I am a mutual friend of your daughter’s boyfriend.”

“But not my daughters’ friend?”

Fleur winced, and she rubbed her arm. “We are on friendly terms.”

“But, not friends,” Emma pressed.

Hermione finally untangled herself from Harry and crossed over to Emma and Fleur. “Mom, please stop bothering Fleur, it’s fine. It’s as she said, we’re on friendly terms, and anyone who protects Harry is ok with me.”

Emma frowned but said nothing as Fleur moved to take Harry’s left-hand while Hermione took his right. Harry blushed while Emma sighed, it was clear to her both girls were at least interested in Harry romantically. Hermione was head over heels in love with him, and the way he reacted to her told Emma that he was at least as enamoured with her. But Fleur was difficult to deny. She had an unearthly beauty which even now was turning many heads. Emma recognised love in both Hermione and Harry, but she still worried about Fleur’s ability to turn Harry’s head.

* * *

_Chateau Delacour,_ _Neuilly-sur-Seine, France_

Fleur and Tonks apparated back to the Chateau with Harry, Hermione, and Emma and Fleur led them towards the house while the Guard returned to his usual duties. After surrendering her wand at the Guard House, Hermione followed the rest of the group into the house where Apolline Delacour was waiting for them. “Bonjour Missus and Miss Granger, I am Apolline Delacour, Fleur’s mother. I am pleased to welcome you to my home.”

Hermione smiled and gave Apolline a small bow. “Thank you, Madame Delacour, thank you for giving somewhere for us and Harry to stay. I’m so glad Harry is safe with you this summer, it’s much better than where he was living.” Hermione replied it wasn’t a lie. She was happy that Harry was staying somewhere other than with his relatives. She wished it weren’t in the same house with Fleur, but she was going to keep that to herself.

When Hermione realised her mother hadn’t said anything, she elbowed Emma in the ribs, which made her snap out of her stupor and smile brightly at Apolline. “Thank you for inviting us into your beautiful home.”

Apolline returned the smile, not entirely hiding the way her eyes travelled up and down Emma’s body as she did. “You’re welcome, Missus Granger.”

“My friends call me Emma,” She replied.

“My friends call me Apolline.”

Harry, Hermione, Fleur, and Tonks looked between the two older women, and Fleur wasn’t surprised to see her mother, a well-known bisexual, flirting. But Hermione was struck dumb in shock. She’d never seen the flirty side of Emma before and she’d rarely seen her mother smile like she was at Apolline. Harry meanwhile was trying to think of anything but the two older women kissing, and Tonks looked on bemused by the varying reactions of the three teens.

* * *

Hermione, Tonks, and Harry followed Fleur upstairs and through the house to the guest quarters, along the way, she passed Harry’s room, stopping two doors down and turning around. “Hermione, this will be your room, your mother will take the room across the hall. Harry is two doors down, and Auror Tonks has the room in between.”

“Yeah, so I’ll know if you sneak out for some late-night nooky,” Tonks added teasingly, causing the two teens to blush.

“Who sleeps in that room?” Hermione asked, pointing at the door opposite Harry’s.

“That’s my room,” Fleur announced smugly. Hermione cast a withering glance at Harry who wilted slightly under the glare as she marched forward grabbing his hand and dragged Harry into his room, slamming the door shut.

Tonks sighed, leaning her back against the wall, watching Fleur evenly. “Why are you antagonising her?”

“Why not?” Fleur asked with a smile; it fell away as Tonks expression didn’t change. “I bear no ill will towards Hermione, except that she is dating the man I love. I said I would not pursue him while they are dating; I regret that now.”

“Have you considered you don’t have to be enemies, you both love him, he loves both of you, I don’t see why you can’t share.” Tonks opined, Fleur opened her mouth and then closed it again.

When Fleur didn’t respond Tonks added. “Continue to antagonise Hermione, and you won’t just lose your opportunity to be Harry’s girlfriend, you’ll lose Harry as a friend as well. From what I’m told, Hermione is his entire world, but hey smart people do stupid things all the time.”

* * *

Once Harry and Hermione were alone, Hermione turned around and planted a kiss on Harry’s lips, wrapping him tightly in a hug. Once Hermione pulled away, Harry gave her a wry grin. “What was that for?”

“Just a reminder that I’m your girlfriend.”

“Believe me, and I haven’t forgotten. there is something we need to talk about though…” Harry explained, leading Hermione to the bed. “During the Second Task, I saved Fleur from a group of angry Grindylows, by the time I got to her the Bubblehead Charm she’d been using had failed. I had to give her mouth to mouth…”

“Harry, I know all of this, Fleur told me.”

Harry nodded. “Oh, um, well, what we didn’t know at the time is, by saving her life Fleur and I created a soul bond,” Harry explained as he watched the blood drain out of Hermione’s face. “Oh, so I guess you know what that is.”

Hermione looked down at the ground, gently pulling her hands out of Harry’s. “I need some time alone.”

Hermione stood up and walked out. She stopped at the door when Harry called out to her. “Hermione, I still love you.”

“I love you too, Harry,” Hermione replied quietly.

* * *

Hermione walked down the corridor without a word to Fleur or Tonks and moved to shut the door, but a hand reached out and stopped her. Hermione glared at the blonde girl on the other side of the door as she tried to force it to shut again. “Fleur, I don’t want to talk to you.”

“I know, but we should. I assume Arry told you about the Soul Bond?”

“Yes, he did.”

“You think it’s the end of the two of you?” Fleur asked, walking into the room.

“What else am I supposed to think? You have a claim on his immortal soul as he does with yours! How do I contend with that Fleur?”

“You shouldn’t. I told you that before.”

Hermione dearly wanted to slap that smug look off Fleur’s face, but instead, she simply curled her hand into a fist and turned away from Fleur to sit down at the small desk provided. “I think you should leave before you say something else you can’t take back.” Hermione hissed. Fleur swept out of the room in a huff as Hermione fell onto the bed and began to cry.

* * *

Fleur walked out of the room and rested against the wall, not looking in Tonks’s direction, watching Harry and Hermione together made the blonde Veela angry beyond reason. It made Fleur want to say spit-filled, hurtful things to the English girl that had never done anything to her except loving the same boy she shared a Soul Bond. But at the same time, it hurt her to see Hermione upset, when her brown orbs clouded with anguish it pulled at her soul. So much so Fleur had to look away, or she feared she would break down crying.

Fleur knew Harry had intense feelings for Hermione; they were beyond love or friendship; he adored her. Fleur could feel that through the link, but it wasn’t as described. Fleur’s Grandmother was the last Veela to share a Soul Bond with a Wizard, she spoke about that time in her life rarely, but when she did it was clear she still held great affection the man she’d lost to Grindelwald’s forces many moons ago. Fleur’s Grandmother described the emotions she shared with him as something she could reach out and touch. It was tangible and real to her in a way she was never able to describe to someone who hadn’t experienced it themselves adequately.

But Fleur felt none of this, all she could feel were surface emotions from Harry, the occasional glimpse into his psyche. The only times it ever felt tangible was when his feelings peaked, and all of those had been negative thus far.

Fleur decided she needed advice and went directly to one person she trusted to give her good advice, her mother.

* * *

Fleur knocked on the door to her mother’s office and was surprised to find Emma Granger sitting in one of the office chairs talking with Apolline. Fleur’s mother graced her with a smile. “Good afternoon Flower, was there something you needed?”

Fleur nodded. “Oui, Maman, but in private please?”

Emma smiled and rose from her seat. “I will go find the library then, Au Revoir Cherie.”

“I will join you soon,” Apolline replied, giving Emma a saucy wink.

Once Emma was gone, Fleur regarded her mother with a raised eyebrow. “Another one of your conquests Maman?”

“We’ll see, so, what did you need to talk to me about?”

“Do you remember how Grandmother described the Soul Bond she shared with her first husband?” Fleur asked, to which Apolline nodded. “I don’t feel that with Arry, it’s as if something is interrupting the connection. All I feel are intermittent surface emotions with the occasional spikes when Arry is hurt or being tortured. I don’t know what’s wrong and there isn’t enough written about soul bonds to explain it.”

Apolline nodded and came around the desk to kneel in front of her daughter. “Show me your magic Flower, that may provide a hint.”

Fleur nodded and focused, bringing forth a sphere of ambient magic that represented her core. There were two taut strands of magic, one connected to Fleur and the other pointing in the direction of Harry’s room. But the magic did not shine brightly as Fleur had been told it would. Instead, it was a dull grey colour. Apolline walked around the sphere and stopped kneeling again and brushing her fingers over a third strand that hung limply. “I have known a few men like this...”

“Maman...” Fleur admonished with a slight grin on her face. “Although I am proud to say that Arry does not have this problem.”

“Lucky you...” Apolline commented dryly. “It would seem that this is the cause of your problems. There is another the Soul Bond trying to reach, but the connection is incomplete. There is no acceptance of the Bond.”

“So, until we find this third person, I cannot share myself completely with Arry?”

“I would imagine...” Apolline began before being loudly cut off by Fleur.

“We need to find this person soon, Maman.”

Fleur began to storm away, but her mother’s voice drew her back. “Fleur Delacour, you know who the third in your Soul Bond is as well as I. Do not play stupid with me. If you do not tell them, I will.”

“Maman, no!” Fleur protested angrily.

“Fleur, this is for your benefit as well as theirs. If the Soul Bond isn’t complete, it could harm all three of you. The damage to your magic will be irreversible.”

“How do you know the third is Hermione, it could be that Weasley girl,” Fleur argued, but the thought made her slightly ill.

“Because, my flower, the Bond is incomplete, the Weasley girl is not here, but Hermione is. When I first saw the Bond, I didn’t see any evidence of a third. But here, now, with the three of you under the same roof, we can see the incomplete strand. The only explanation is that strand developed because of the proximity of the third. And the direction was pointing roughly towards Miss Granger’s room.”

Fleur paused, scowling. “Fine, I will tell them...”

“Today, Fleur.”

Fleur dropped her head, shielding her eyes behind her fringe. “Yes, Maman.”

* * *

Harry was about to flop back onto his bed when he heard a knock at his door. He looked up to meet the Brown Eyes of Nymphadora Tonks. “Are you ok, Harry?”

Harry fell back on the bed and sighed. “I don’t know. My brain is a mess…”

Tonks closed the door and sat down. “Tell your favourite cousin what you’re thinking?”

Harry smiled a little. “I love Hermione…”

“I noticed that.”

“But I love Fleur as well, and we’re soul bound.”

“Wow,” Tonks replied, sounding genuinely surprised.

“Yeah, it happened during the second task, I saved Fleur’s life by giving her mouth to mouth and…. Yeah.”

“How do you feel about it?”

Harry groaned. “I… wish I knew. I know I should be excited; most guys would be. But I love Hermione, and she’s my girlfriend. She deserves better than this.”

“That still doesn’t tell me how you feel about it?” Tonks pressed.

“I don’t like it, but I want to, I love Hermione, and I want to be with her, just her. But Fleur keeps pushing me to dump Hermione and date her, not explicitly but I can feel it, and it annoys me.”

“But you haven’t said anything,” Tonks pointed out.

“I know, I should but… Fleur and her Mom took me in when the Death Eaters attacked, and if it weren’t for them, I’d be back at the Dursley’s believing Hermione had dumped me because Dumbledore put a mail redirection ward on that house. I want to say something but what if I upset them and they kick me out. Where do I go then? Dumbledore will immediately force me to do what he wants, and no one will be there to protect me.”

Tonks frowned. “Firstly, I’m here to protect you, so are Madam Bones and Hermione and my Mom, we won’t let that stupid old man hurt you again. As for Fleur, you need to be firm with her, you have to tell her what you’re feeling, or she’ll continue to disrespect Hermione. That’s not what you want, is it?”

“Of course not, but I don’t want to hurt Fleur’s feelings either.”

“You have to decide Harry because someone is going to end up hurt no matter what you do.”

Harry dragged a hand over his face. “Yeah, I know...”

“If you need time to think...” Tonks paused, pondering something as she got off the bed. “I could ask my Mum if you could go stay with her. She’s staying in a hotel in Paris, and she has a room going spare.”

Harry cocked his head, deep in thought. “That’s a good idea, but I can’t, it feels too much like running away, and I don’t want to give Hermione the wrong impression.”

Tonks leaned in and ruffled Harry’s hair. “Ok, but you need to talk to them soon. Don’t worry, Harry. Things will work out.”

Tonks walked out leaving Harry on his own. He sighed and stared up at the ceiling. “Yeah, it’ll work out for everyone but me. Because that’s how it always goes.”

* * *

Harry looked up from the bed when he heard a knock on the door, he crossed the room and peered out to find Hermione and Fleur waiting for him. “Arry, we need to talk.”

Harry looked down at the floor and frowned. “Yeah.”

Harry stepped aside, allowing the two girls inside and closing the door. When Harry turned around, Fleur was still standing, but Hermione was sitting on his bed. “Arry, I am not the first in my family to share a Soul Bond, my Grandmother shared a Soul Bond with her first husband, but he died in the war with Grindelwald before he could give her any children...” Fleur briefly relayed how the Soul Bond had been described to her.

“Fleur, are you sure we share a Soul Bond? I don’t feel anything like what you described.”

“I am sure we share a Bond...” Fleur paused. “It’s better if I show you.”

Fleur focused her magic for the second time that day and revealed her core to the two younger teens. Hermione stared in fascination and resignation. Hermione had hoped that Fleur had been lying, the Soul Bond was a convenient lie to drive a final wedge between Harry and herself. But staring at it in the magic brought it home to Hermione that the two did share a Soul Bond and she would have to step aside. Lost in thought, she didn’t see Harry step forward to examine the sphere.

“Fleur, what’s this third strand?” Harry asked, running his fingers over the strand that was jutting out and pointing in Hermione’s direction.

Fleur crossed her arms over herself and looked away. “That’s the third person in our Bond. The Bond will be incomplete until they join.”

Harry blinked looking between Hermione and Fleur. “But... Hermione... I mean she _was_ down in the lake with us. But not with us when I saved you from the Grindylows. And if that was the case, Cho, Cedric, Gabby and...” Harry shuddered. “Ginny would be in the bond with us.”

Fleur smiled a little. “The Bond is based on many factors Arry. Ours was created due to the circumstances under the lake. The Bond between you and Hermione was based on your love for one another.”

Hermione and Harry blushed and stole glances at each other. “So...” Hermione began. “If we were to finalise the bond, it would bind the three of us together?”

“Oui,” Fleur confirmed.

Hermione frowned and looked away, walking to the far end of the bedroom, the furthest point from Fleur and Harry. Harry ran his fingers through his hair and walked over, he tried to put his arms around her, but Hermione shook him off. “Hermione, talk to me.”

“This isn’t how I thought things would go... I never imagined it would be perfect. But I... wanted it to be closer to normal than this. I wanted the man I love to love me and only me. I don’t want to share.”

Hermione turned around to face Fleur. “What happens if we don’t complete the bond?”

“It will leave a permanent scar on our magic. It may even turn us into squibs, I cannot say for sure, but I know there will be a penalty.”

“Hermione, do you not want to...”

“I don’t know Harry. I need to think about it.”

“Ok,” Harry replied softly.

“I think we should all take some time to think about this,” Fleur said, walking to the door with Hermione joining her.

Once Harry was alone, he flopped back on the bed, he heard the flapping of wing but didn’t react as Hedwig landed next to his head and began grooming him gently. Harry lifted his hand and began stroking his Snowy white Owl gently. “I wish I knew what the right answer was. It seems easy on the surface, just complete the Bond and everyone gets what they want. Except they don’t if they don’t want to be bonded for the rest of their lives, what happens in a week or a month if one of them gets fed up with me, we’d be stuck together.”

Hedwig hooted softly, pecking at his head. “I don’t think I could ever get fed up with Hermione. Not in a way that means I’d never want to see her again.”

Hedwig clicked her beak and cuffed Harry around the head. “Hey!”

Harry glared down at his Owl, who fixed him with a measured stare. “Ok, ok, I know, if Hermione were going to get fed up with me, she would have in the four years we’ve known each other. But...” Hedwig hooted loudly flapping her wings threateningly. “Ok, ok...” Harry replied, raising his hands placatingly. This seemed to appease his Owl, at least for the moment.

“So... what should I do?” Harry asked.

Hedwig tilted her head sideways and flew off the bed to the desk Harry had put his photo album on. The Owl picked it up in her claws and flew back, dropping it on the bed. Hedwig nudged the album towards Harry and, taking the hint he opened the album to the pictures he had of Fleur and Hermione which had been taken by Colin. Hedwig tapped her beak on the only picture of the three of them together. Harry smiled a little as he ran his fingers over their faces. “I want that too...”

* * *

Fleur walked back to her mother’s office where Apolline was waiting. “So?”

“I told them, we have separated to think over our choices.”

“Do you think Hermione will accept her place in the Bond?”

“I…” Fleur began, she wanted to say yes, but after… “I don’t know, I hope so.”

Apolline stood and walked around the desk, crossing her arms. “This would have been easier if you hadn’t openly pursued Arry while he was dating Hermione.”

Fleur winced and looked away. “Yes, I know.”

Apolline walked up and kissed her daughter on the head. “Go rest, flower. It has been a long day.”

* * *

_21 July 1995_

The next day the three teens decided to stay in their rooms, Emma had planned to take them out for a walk around Paris, but none of the three seemed interested, too wrapped up in their conflicting thoughts around the Soul Bond. As the noon sun hung overhead, Harry heard a knock on his door. He reluctantly answered to find Fleur waiting for him. “May I sit with you?”

Harry regarded her for a moment before speaking. “Depends, are you going to talk about the bond?”

“Only briefly.”

“Ok, but after that, we won’t talk about it.”

“I can agree with that.”

The two sat on the bed together, but Harry kept his distance. Fleur frowned, pulling at her dress slightly. “Arry, I’m sorry for what I’ve been doing recently. My mother reminded me last night that if I hadn’t openly pursued you, Hermione might be more open to sharing a bond with us.”

“The thought had crossed my mind,” Harry replied quietly. “You should apologise to Hermione though, as should I.”

“I will, I…” Fleur paused. “I won’t promise, I can’t, I said I wouldn’t try to break the two of you us while you were together, but I broke that promise. Now I have to earn that trust back.”

“Yes,” Harry replied.

The two fell into an uncomfortable silence as Fleur noticed something on the bed. “Arry, what is this?”

“Oh, it’s a photo album, Hagrid, the Hogwarts Groundskeeper gave it to me for Christmas the first year I was at Hogwarts.”

“May I look?”

Harry nodded, and Fleur picked up the album off the bed. Fleur paused at the first photo of Lily and James. “Your mother was a beautiful woman.”

“Yeah, according to everyone who knew them I look like my dad, but I have…”

“Your mother’s eyes?” Fleur finished and smiled when he nodded. “Oui, you both have enchanting eyes.”

“Thanks,” Harry replied quietly, Fleur took this as a hint to leave.

As she exited Harry’s room, Hermione came out to have a shower. The two stared at each other for several seconds before Hermione walked away, her eyes hidden behind her fringe. Fleur opened her mouth to say something, but the words died on her tongue. Fleur decided she wasn’t ready for that conversation yet.

* * *

_22 July 1995_

_Office of the Bureau de la Justice Magique, Paris, France_

Apolline Delacour let out a sigh as she entered the small office, she’d allocated for Amelia Bones on the days she was in Paris as they continued to search for Remus Lupin. Amelia looked up from her work and gave the younger woman a sympathetic smile. “Louis for your thoughts?” (A/N: Louis is a colloquial term for a 20 Centime coin. Also known as a Napoleon.)

Apolline massaged the bridge of her nose and nodded. “Oui, I love my daughters very much, but sometimes they can do some utterly stupid things.”

“Anyone in particular?” Amelia asked if only to allow the older woman to complain. She knew who Apolline was talking about having had this discussion in the previous few days.

“Fleur, Arry, and Hermione continue to dance around each other, no one is willing to commit to the soul bond, but at the same time, they’re not willing to walk away.”

“They understand the implications of walking away, though, right?”

“I asked both Arry and Hermione personally, Fleur explained, however reluctantly, the consequences of Hermione not joining the Bond. But I think Hermione believes she will be frozen out of the relationship.”

Amelia nodded. “We can only hope that they figure out their feelings soon.”

“Oui...”

* * *

_Outside Paris_

Ron entered the living room of the cottage he was sharing with his mother, Ginny, Lupin, Snape, and the Headmaster. Because Molly was the only one who could go out without arousing suspicion and with limited funds, the amount of food each member of the house got was small. This didn’t sit well with the youngest Weasley male, and he was on the hunt. Dumbledore was sitting at a small table near the window etching runes into a block of wood.

“Professor, what are you doing?”

“Ah, Mister Weasley, come here, this might interest you,” Dumbledore said, summoning Ron over. “I am etching runes into this wood. I have calculated Arithmantic values for each rune and then carved them into the wood. I will now add some enchanted ink…” Dumbledore reached over for a small cup and poured the contents into the etchings. “And apply the etchings to the paper.”

Dumbledore finished by pressing the block of wood into the paper and casting a spell that heated the block to dry the ink. When he was finished, he tossed the wood into the heath and lit a small fire with his wand that he extinguished once the block was reduced to ash.

“What will it do, Professor?” Ron asked, sounding slightly bored.

“It is a small surprise for Mister Potter,” Dumbledore explained but refused to extrapolate further when met with Ron’s quizzical expression.

“Well, there’s no food in here, I guess I’ll go ask Mum,” Ron replied, walking out of the room. As he left a thought passed through Dumbledore’s head, one that often recurred when he saw the youngest Weasley male. ‘Was he dropped on his head as a baby?’

* * *

_23 July 1995_

_Chateau Delacour,_ _Neuilly-sur-Seine, France_

Emma Granger stood outside of her daughter’s room and knocked. She heard Hermione padding across the floors a few seconds later before she opened the door. “Hi.”

“May I come in?”

Hermione nodded and opened the door enough to allow Emma to enter the room. As soon as Emma was inside, Hermione shut the door and locked it. “Hermione, you’ve not come out of your room in days, except to collect food or bathe.”

“Mum, I’m just sorting through some things.”

“The same things Fleur and Harry are sorting through?”

“Yes,” Hermione replied shortly.

“Hermione, talk to me?” Emma pleaded.

Hermione sighed and proceeded to explain to her mother in great detail the nature of the Bond the three shared and the consequences of not finalising it. Emma frowned as she considered the information. “So, if you don’t finalise the bond, you could lose your magic?”

“Yes.”

“Are you comfortable with that?”

Hermione brought her knees up to her chin and worried her bottom lip while she mulled the answer. “I don’t know...”

“Is this about Fleur or Harry?”

“Both I guess... Fleur has made me so angry recently by not respecting that Harry and I are in a relationship even though she said she would. And Harry is letting her. Now they’re tied together for life, and I’m supposed to join them?!” Hermione ranted as her voice took on a higher lilt. “I’m supposed to make a decision that will affect the rest of my life at fifteen. What if I decide in a month or a year that I don’t like Harry anymore and I want to date someone else, what if I wanted to date Neville or Dean Thomas or Seamus... no, not Seamus.” Hermione spat angrily, dismissing her year-mate and noted womaniser.

“Hermione, be honest with me. Would you dump Harry? Would you want to live your life without him in it?”

“I...” Hermione began but stopped as she recalled the few months in Third Year when Ron had convinced Harry that Hermione had betrayed him by telling McGonagall about the Firebolt. She remembered how miserable she was and the longing stares she would send Harry’s when no one was looking. “No, I wouldn’t, but he might dump me! You can’t tell me that Fleur isn’t way more beautiful than me!”

Emma sighed and gently stroked her daughter’s hair. “No, I can’t, but I can say that you are beautiful in your own right. Not just on the outside but inside as well. Harry sees things about you that you don’t see in yourself. You are not only smart but incredibly loyal; that’s something you have noted that Harry treasures. You don’t lie to him or treat him like something he’s not. You take people at face value, so long as they prove they’re trustworthy.”

“Fleur is stunning, but Harry chose you. As for why he hasn’t told Fleur to back off I can’t say. You’re right, he should, but I hope he has a good reason for what he’s doing. I’m sure he’s just as confused and scared about all of this as you are.”

Hermione nodded and sat silently, playing with her fingers. Emma leaned down to catch her eye. “What are you thinking about now?”

“I think I want to be part of the Bond, but I need more time to think about it. What Fleur has done hurts, I’m going to need to move passed it in my head before I can consider accepting this.”

Emma nodded and leaned in, kissing Hermione on the head. “Ok love, just don’t take too long.”

* * *

_24 July 1995_

For the first time in a few days, the entire Delacour Household and Andromeda Tonks were present for Breakfast, but the mood was still tense as the three teens yet hadn’t decided whether their future would be together or apart. The room was mostly quiet until an Auror entered carrying the mail. “Mister Potter has received a letter.”

Harry looked up, and his eyes widened. “It’s from Sirius!”

Andromeda and Apolline both looked up as he said this. “Harry! Don’t touch…!”

As Tonks and Apolline reached across the table, Harry disappeared in a twist of Portkey magic.

**To Be Continued…**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to address a review I got recently, the review pointed out that the French use the Euro as a currency, which is correct, in 2020. In 1995 they still used the Franc, the Euro would not become an accounting currency until 1999 and legal tender until 2002. The Franc was phased out in March 2002 (Although you could still exchange it for Euro’s at French Banks until 2012).
> 
> I don’t mind if you point out a factual error I made, as long as you’re polite about it, but you need to be right. Please check Google first.
> 
> I hope I can have the next chapter out by early next week, Trails of Cold Steel 4, which I have been waiting to come out for a year (basically since I finished 3.) comes out next week and I will be obsessed with that game until I finish it. So, I may not post another chapter after Chapter 12 for a little while. Please be patient.
> 
> There may be a surprise for all of you next week. But I can’t say anything yet. Stay tuned.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Harry Potter Franchise or its characters. All characters used are the property of their respective owners.
> 
> This story is rated M for violence, language, & sexual themes.
> 
> A Special Thanks to my Alpha on this story Sakubato.
> 
> This story is a Horcrux free zone.
> 
> Warning: Manipulative Dumbledore & Weasley Bashing (Ron, Molly, & Ginny.)

_Neuilly-sur-Seine, France_

_24 July 1995_

Harry dropped to all fours on the ground, his field of vision turning red within seconds of the Portkey depositing him in an empty lot. Harry’s body screamed with pain as he vomited up a mix of his blood and breakfast. But he didn’t have time to process anything as he was grabbed roughly by the arms and had another Portkey slapped against his chest.

* * *

_Outside Paris_

Harry was hauled from where he landed into a room with a bed and a chair. He was roughly shoved into the chair, and his mouth was forced open as he was made to swallow a blood replenishing and pain relief potion. Once they were done, Harry slumped to the ground and passed out.

* * *

_Chateau Delacour,_ _Neuilly-sur-Seine, France_

The occupants of the breakfast table shielded their ears as the ward alarms screamed, summoning Apolline’s Auror guard. Apolline stood up, her eyes full of fury as she spoke. “Stand down!”

The guards sheathed their wands as instructed and waited for their next order. “Harry Potter was kidnapped via Portkey from my breakfast table, find out where he went, who has him and _why_ a Portkey was able to get through my Wards!”

Tonks and Apolline’s Auror guards rushed out of the room to begin the search. Hermione simply stared at the space previously occupied by her boyfriend as Fleur came around the table and wrapped Hermione in a hug. “They will find him, and he will be returned to us.”

“I thought he was safe here... I wanted to believe we could finally relax and not worry about Dumbledore.” Hermione whispered.

“They will find him, cherie, Maman has the best Aurors in the world working for her. They will not fail.”

“I hope you’re right.”

* * *

An hour later, one of the Aurors returned with the letter in a plastic bag which she handed to Apolline. “We traced Mister Potter’s magical signature to an empty lot nearby. There was evidence that Mister Potter was hurt after being pulled through the wards, but forensic analysis of the area says he was portkeyed again seconds after landing. We ran a trace, but the signature dissipated at the Paris city limits.”

Apolline nodded. “Thank you Auror, continue searching. I want Potter found, and his kidnappers brought to me. Take the envelope and have it examined, I want to know how a Portkey got through my wards.”

“Yes, Ma’am.”

At this, Hermione stood up. “Madame Delacour, may I examine the envelope? I would like to do something constructive instead of just sitting here.”

Apolline nodded. “This envelope is evidence Miss Granger, please don’t let it out of your sight.”

“Yes, Ma’am.”

As Hermione left the room, Apolline summoned the Auror over. “Keep a watch over Miss Granger, Mister Potter’s kidnappers have an unhealthy interest in that young woman as well. I do not want a repeat of this morning.”

“You know who took Potter, Ma’am?” The Auror asked.

“I have my suspicions.”

* * *

_Outside Paris_

Several hours had passed since Harry woke up, pulling himself onto the bed. Harry had used the sheet provided to wipe the blood from his eyes. He’d tried the door and found it locked and the same with the window. The bed and the chair were magically bonded to the floor. Harry’s attention was drawn to the door when he heard the lock slid back. It opened to reveal Remus Lupin, wand in hand and Molly Weasley with a bowl of water and a washcloth. “Hello Harry, dear, I thought you might want to wash your face.”

Harry glared at them. “Where is Dumbledore?”

“Professor Dumbledore Harry,” Molly replied admonishingly.

“I’m not planning on returning to Hogwarts. He’s just Dumbledore to me.”

Molly placed the bowl on the chair and waved her hand at him. “Don’t talk nonsense dear, of course; you’re going to return to Hogwarts. It’s the best magical school in the world.”

“The best is debatable, but it’s not the only school for magic. Beauxbaton is taking students. I could go to America and attend Ilvermorny. Or Brazil’s Castelbruxo. I might even attend Durmstrung.”

Molly placed her hand on her chest dramatically. “Harry James Potter, how dare you! What would your parents say if they knew you were considering going to that dreadful place!”

“I wouldn’t know, because of Dumbledore, they’re dead,” Harry replied coldly.

Molly Weasley moved towards Harry threatening but was pulled away by Lupin, forcing her out of the room. Remus turned around and regarded Harry sadly. “You don’t believe that do you, Harry?”

Harry crossed his arms and continued to stare Lupin down. “He didn’t do anything to save them. He was the one who convinced them to take Peter on as the secret keeper, yes or no?”

“Yes, but we couldn’t...”

“Couldn’t you? Vertiaserum was a thing back when Voldemort was around.”

“But he was our friend!” Lupin protested.

“So, it was a war! Friends were turning on friends all the time. If my Dad asked would you have taken a dose or an oath of your magic that you weren’t a Death Eater?”

“Of course!”

“Then why shouldn’t Pettigrew!”

An uncomfortable silence hung in the air as Lupin turned away. “We should have been able to trust our friends.”

“You couldn’t, and my parents and Sirius paid the price. And you’re compounding the error. My parents would be disgusted with you.”

“How would you know?” Lupin bit back but then looked away, ashamed, shutting and locking the door behind him.

* * *

_Chateau Delacour,_ _Neuilly-sur-Seine, France_

Hermione sat with her head in her hands, the envelope that had Portkeyed Harry into the hands of his captors sat unfolded on the table. The only thing Hermione had determined from her examination was that the paper was enchanted with Runes to act as a portkey. What she hadn’t figured out was what the runes said or how it was able to pass through so many hands before getting to Harry. There was a knock at the door, and Hermione peered up over the pile of books on the table. “Enter.”

Hermione immediately frowned when Fleur stepped inside. “Merci, Hermione, I wanted to see if you needed any help?”

Hermione’s face disappeared behind the books again. “No, thank you, I can figure this out on my own.”

“Hermione, you’ve been studying the envelope for six hours. You need to rest.”

“I can’t, I won’t, not until I figure this out. Your Mum put her trust in me to figure this out.”

“Then, let me help,” Fleur pleaded.

Hermione stared for several seconds before giving a reluctant nod and shifting over to allow Fleur room to sit in a chair. Fleur waved her wand, and a series of numbers appeared in the air in front of them. Fleur pulled a piece of parchment forward and wrote the numbers down before dismissing the spell and picking up one of the books. “What spell did you use?”

Fleur smiled, picking up her wand and performing the wand movements slowly so Hermione could mimic them. “Magia Ostende is the incantation. It’s a spell that reveals the Arithmantic equation used in a spell. It’s taught during the sixth year at Beauxbaton.”

Hermione nodded and practised the movement four more times before turning her wand on the parchment. “ _Magia Ostende_!” Hermione intoned, and the equation appeared over the runes once again. Fleur smiled. “Good work Hermione. I witnessed many of my fellow Sixth Years struggle when we were taught that spell.”

Hermione returned Fleur’s smile before looking away. “T-thank you… I think that’s the first time you’ve said something nice about me since we met.”

“No, I said you looked beautiful when we attended the Yule Ball.”

Hermione blushed, pulling the parchment forward and looked it over. Hermione began writing out an equation under the one Fleur had jotted down. “One of my essays last year asked me to dissect the Arithmantic equation of a Portkey. I just don’t know what this other equation is for…”

Fleur looked over Hermione’s shoulder, her breasts pressed into Hermione’s back, making the younger girl blush. Fleur reached out and grabbed a pen and began writing in a space next to Hermione’s notations. “I think we have to ask ourselves why the Portkey only activated when Harry touched it. The only answer is that the other equation is related to Harry’s magical signature.”

Hermione nodded, pulling the piece of parchment towards them. “That would make this,” Hermione began tapping the middle mark on the paper. “For Portkey activation. That would tie it into this rune, which based on the Arithmantic formula, is the one responsible for responding to Harry’s magic.”

“The first rune is responsible for hiding the purpose of the letter if anyone scans it all they’ll find is a letter for Harry Potter for his Godfather.” Fleur surmised.

“That makes the last rune a power rune, and someone poured a substantial amount of power into it to override the wards. Harry must have been in so much pain…” Hermione said, whispering the last part as Fleur took her hand.

Hermione looked up and gave Fleur a weak smile. “I know, I need to have faith.”

“We will save him, Hermione, I love him too.”

Hermione looked away with a bitter expression. “I know, I’m just having a hard time accepting it.”

“I feel similarly, but I know Harry loves us both, I can feel that even if the connection is muted.”

“Then why have you been acting the way you have?”

Fleur sat down again, looking at the floor. “My nature thinks you are a threat to my relationship with Arry. I want him, I need him, but I thought it was just us. I never considered that his love would push his magic to reach out to try and establish a bond with you. Even when my mother showed me the link, I couldn’t accept it. I had to push you away as a threat. I couldn’t see past my nature to who you are as a person.”

Fleur stood up and walked away from Hermione towards the door. “When Arry returns, we should sit down and talk about where we go from here. I will always love him... but I want to make us work. You’ve been nothing but kind to me, Hermione, even when I haven’t deserved it.”

Hermione raised an eyebrow. “What brought on this change of heart?”

“The anguish I saw in your eyes broke your heart. I know Arry would be angry with me if I didn’t try to help you or support you in this. That made me reconsider my recent actions. I’ve been a complete bitch recently because I was jealous. I can’t promise I won’t be jealous again in the future, but I’ll try to be better.”

Hermione walked over and took Fleur by the hand and smiled. “Maybe if we complete the bond, we’ll understand each other better.”

“If?”

Hermione withdrew her hand. “I still have my reservations.”

“If it helps, we can talk about it. I am worried about what will happen if we don’t complete the Bond, but I want to Arry to be happy.”

Hermione picked the envelope off the table and dropped it back into the bag provided. “We should take this to Madame Delacour. She’ll want to know how the Portkey made it through the wards,” Hermione explained, Fleur nodded, and the two exited the room and walked over to Apolline’s office.

* * *

_Outside Paris_

The door to Harry’s cell opened once again, this time Remus entered carrying a tray of food, Snape covering Remus and Dumbledore. Harry didn’t know who to glare at so he decided to glare at Dumbledore as Remus put the food at the foot of the bed and Dumbledore sat down. “Good evening, Young Harry.”

Harry glanced at the food and laughed. “You’ve got to be kidding. Do you think I will eat that?”

Dumbledore frowned. “Missus Weasley worked hard to prepare a meal for you, Harry. It would be insulting for you to turn it down.”

Harry sneered at Dumbledore and kicked the food off the bed. Dumbledore shook his head, looking disappointed. “Very well.”

Dumbledore waved his hand, and the food disappeared. “Young Harry, Missus Weasley told me the distressing news that you’re not planning to return to Hogwarts. I can only say I am troubled by this news, particularly the idea you might attend Durmstrung, and I would remind you this is the school that produced a student that had an unhealthy interest in your friend Miss Granger.”

Harry’s face darkened. “Hermione is my _girl_ friend, not just my best friend. I haven’t decided where I will go next year, except that I won’t be at Hogwarts.”

“But why Harry, Hogwarts is your home, your parents wanted you to attend.”

“I don’t know what my parents would have wanted; they’re dead. But even if they weren’t, I don’t think they would have been happy that I’ve been in life-threatening danger every year since I began attending. You’ve done _nothing_ to stop it from happening. I just want a quiet year to attend school with my girlfriend and enjoy being a student. I want a year where one of my Professors isn’t blinded by jealousy and hatred. You’ve never done anything to stop Snape being a bully and you still won’t if I go back to Hogwarts.”

Dumbledore continued to sit in silence, his eyes boring into Harry as the younger man continued. “You’ve also proved once again. You have an unhealthy interest in controlling my life. Why? Why are you so obsessed with making me do what you want? Why can’t you let me live my life as I want?”

“Harry, I am only doing what I think is best...”

“You _think_ that kidnapping me and ripping me through the Delacour wards was the best thing for me?? You’re insane!”

A frown crossed Dumbledore’s lips once again as he rose from his seat. “It is pointless to continue this conversation; you have no interest in listening to a reasoned argument. Maybe a night’s sleep on an empty stomach will make you see a bit of reason.”

Harry gave Dumbledore a hollow laugh. “I’ve spent plenty of nights sleeping on an empty stomach, thanks to you, and it won’t change how I feel.”

* * *

Dumbledore walked out of the room, followed by Snape and Lupin. Once they were outside and the door was locked and silenced behind them, Snape rounded on Dumbledore. “Will you listen now? The boy won’t bow to your demands. He won’t eat the food; the only way to regain control is to force him to drink the potion.”

Dumbledore waved his hand. “Severus, we are not there yet. Harry is but a boy; there are other ways to entice him into doing what we want.”

Lupin and Snape shared a look that agreed that Dumbledore’s idea would not work, but the two men said nothing as they walked away.

* * *

_Chateau Delacour,_ _Neuilly-sur-Seine, France_

Emma Granger rushed out of her room and down the corridor towards her daughter’s room. The entire house was roused by the screams being emitted by the young woman, as Emma approached, she paused when she spotted that Fleur had reached the door first. Fleur stopped and glanced at Emma and gave her a firm nod. “Please let me handle it. I promise Hermione will calm down.”

Emma nodded reluctantly. She didn’t trust this change of heart Fleur had claimed to have had. Emma wanted to believe the best about the older girl, but she’d seen the misery Fleur had inflicted on Hermione. Emma was slow to trust after that, but she was willing to give Fleur a final chance. “I will be out here if you need me.”

Fleur nodded and entered Hermione’s room, closing the door over so Emma could listen in discreetly. Fleur crossed the room and gently shook Hermione awake, the younger girl grabbed for her wand, but Fleur was quicker, catching Hermione by the wrist. “Hermione, please relax, it’s Fleur, you’re safe in my mother’s house. Please be calm.”

Fleur let her allure flare out slightly, Hermione’s eyes softened, losing their panicked expression as Fleur withdrew her hands and let Hermione settle back on the bed. “Fleur, why are you here?”

Fleur brushed Hermione’s hair out of her sweat-stained face as she sat on the bed beside the brunette. “You were having a nightmare Cherie. You were screaming for Arry, begging, and pleading with him not to abandon you.”

Hermione nodded, sitting up, bringing her knees up against her chest. “It was horrible. We were back at Hogwarts and Harry was telling me he didn’t love me. He loved Ginny. Then he walked away towards Dumbledore and Ginny while Ron dragged me away.”

Fleur reached out and wrapped her arms around Hermione, gently stroking her back. “It’s ok cherie. You’re safe now. I would never let that happen to you or Arry.”

“I was begging Harry to save me, Ron was so much stronger, and he wouldn’t let go. I could see the lust in his eyes and hatred. But Harry didn’t seem to care; all his focus was on Ginny. He looked at me like I was an unwanted nuisance in his life.”

Fleur pulled back, shaking her head furiously. “Arry could never think that of you. Your claim over Arry’s heart is absolute. Ginny Weasley will only ever be a fangirl, not worthy of Arry’s time and attention. Not when we are in his life.”

Hermione managed a small grin. “We do make a pretty awesome combination, your beauty and our brains.”

“Non, cherie, our beauty and brains. Even in my most arrogant moments, I have never denied you are beautiful. From now on, we are a team. We will save Harry and love him together.”

Hermione nodded thoughtfully as Fleur rose from the bed. “I will leave you to sleep if you wake up again, I can ask one of our House-Elves to bring you a Dreamless Sleep potion.”

Hermione nodded again. “Thank you, Fleur.”

“Anytime.”

* * *

_25 July 1995_

Hermione spotted Fleur as she exited her room the next morning and smiled. “Bonjour Fleur.”

“Bonjour, Hermione, did you sleep well?”

Hermione nodded. “After talking to you, yes, thank you.”

Fleur approached, gently brushing some hair out of her face. “You are welcome, Hermione, please remember that we will save Arry. We won’t let Dumbledore win.”

Hermione noticed a weary-looking Tonks emerge from her room and was about to ask about the hunt for Harry when she saw Fleur’s body go stiff. Hermione turned to speak to Fleur when the older girl pushed her against the wall. Hermione tried to push Fleur away, but the blonde’s Veela heritage gave her a strength advantage as Hermione saw a dangerous lust in Fleur’s eyes. “Fleur, stop! What are you doing!”

Fleur silenced Hermione with her lips, aggressively pushing her tongue against the brunette’s mouth as her hand went from Hermione’s arm to grope her breast. Hermione moved her hands against Fleur’s body, trying to force Fleur back as Tonks looped her arms around Fleur’s and pulled her away. The crazy lust in Fleur’s eyes subsided as she regained herself, backing away as horror replaced desire and she retreated into her room, slamming the door. Hermione was panting slightly as she rushed forward knocking on the door hurriedly. “Fleur, what’s wrong?!”

“Get away, Hermione; you need to run away and stay away from me; I am not myself.” Fleur pleaded.

“Why, what’s happened?”

“It’s Arry; someone has fed him a lust potion, I can feel it through the link, the potion is unusually strong, his desire for you is overwhelming. I’ll lose control again if I look at you, I don’t want to hurt you, I don’t want to force you to do something you don’t want to do or are not ready for. Please, you need to leave.”

Hermione glanced worriedly at Tonks, who motioned for Hermione to walk away. “I’ll stay here and make sure Fleur stays put. You go tell your Mum and Madame Delacour.”

* * *

_Earlier…_

_Outside Paris_

Harry groaned as he raised his hand to his head, his stomach growled demandingly as he woke up from a fitful sleep. The food had smelt good the previous night, but he knew Knuts to Galleons that it had been laced by potion by Snape. Dumbledore had stupidly tipped his hand by allowing Harry to see Snape. Still, even if he hadn’t, Harry would have been dubious about eating anything Molly Weasley provided given her history of potioning Arthur Weasley.

Harry’s eyes were drawn lower down the bed as he heard a rustling of the quilt that covered him, he threw the covers off to discover Ginny Weasley grinning manically, her hands the belt of Harry’s trousers. “Good morning Harry.”

“Ginny! What the hell are you doing?!”

Ginny pouted as she tugged on his trousers. “What does it look like? I know you’re used to hanging around with that horrid little mudblood and that French tart…”

Harry growled, which seemed to excite Ginny as she pushed her away roughly. “Their names are Hermione and Fleur! You’ve lost your mind if you think that calling them that will impress me. Get the hell away from me! You’re as delusional as Dumbledore.”

Ginny frowned as she crawled up the bed, she shook her hips, allowing Harry a view down her low-cut top. “Don’t deny it, Harry, I know you want me, all boys want me. But you’re the only boy I will let have me, I can be Lady Potter in public and your little whore in private. You hang around with those _other_ two, so I know what turns you on, the books Mum gave me told me how to pleasure men like you Harry.”

“Men like me?” Harry asked incuriously as he pushed himself up the bed, pressing his back against the wall behind them.

Ginny grinned. “Men who have a taste for muggles girls, I can be your little whore Harry, behind closed doors I can be whatever you want me to be. When Ron and Granger get married, I can take some of her hair and put it in a bottle of Polyjuice potion so you can live out your fantasy of having your way with her. I don’t mind, as long as you remember I’m your Lady Potter.”

Harry dropped off the bed and backed away; he was genuinely scared of the way Ginny was looking at him; it was a frightening level of adoration she had for him. “Ginny, I don’t like you that way; I will never be the person you want me to be. I am _not_ the Harry Potter from those books your parents read to you; I am in love with Hermione. Hermione is my future if she’ll let me be hers, we’re _never_ going to be together, I will _not_ marry you. Dumbledore and your Mum have brainwashed you into believing this fantasy, it's dangerous and the person suffering is you.”

Harry looked away for a second when his back hit the opposite wall from the bed to find out which way to move next. When he looked back, Ginny was on top of him, pressing her lips against his and forcing his mouth open, allowing the liquid to flow into his mouth. Ginny pressed her wand against his throat and muttered an incantation which caused him to swallow. Harry pushed Ginny away onto the floor, spitting on the floor. “What the fuck are you doing?!”

Ginny grinned at Harry. “Soon you won’t care about Granger, and you won’t care about anything but fucking me.”

Harry groaned and raised his hands to his head, he could feel himself getting painfully erect, his brain was being flooded with the urge to have sex, but he knew he had to resist. Firstly, because Ginny was fourteen and, no. But almost as important was that Harry didn’t care about her that way, he wanted to be with Hermione and/or Fleur, and he wanted to wait until he was a bit older. Harry didn’t want to regret his first time, he had so little control over his life, and this was one thing he could decide for himself. Harry wouldn’t let Ginny or Dumbledore take that control away.

Ginny crawled towards Harry having discarded her shirt and shorts, leaving her in just panties as she licked her lips seductively. “Why do you deny yourself, Harry, you want it, give in.”

Harry looked up at Ginny, and the walls shuddered as a pulse of magic threw the redhead from the room. Lupin quickly shut the door and locked it as Molly threw a blanket over her daughter. “It’s ok, Ginny, dear, you did so well. Harry is just under the spell of that horrid Granger girl.”

Ginny nodded as Molly rushed her away to allow her to change. Dumbledore watched from the end of the corridor with Snape standing beside him. “What will you do now, Headmaster?”

Dumbledore removed his glasses and cleaned them on his robes. “I am surprised by Young Harry’s level of resistance. I regret we must resort to your plan. Is the potion ready?”

“It will be another few hours yet.”

“Good, that will give me time to prepare Remus for what comes next.”

* * *

Harry sat on the floor with his legs pressed against his chest and his head in his hands. Harry’s head throbbed with the urge to have sex fighting with his desire to stay in control. “Hermione, Fleur, please, save me…”

* * *

_Ministry of Magic, London, GB_

_Department of Magical Law Enforcement_

_Amelia Bones Office_

Kingsley Shacklebolt entered his boss’s office and smiled, he liked Amelia, she was the best Auror he’d ever worked with, Mad-Eye Moody had handpicked her as one of his apprentices, which at the time was a rare honour. When Amelia looked up, Kingsley could see the hard look in her eyes and knew he was in trouble. “Have a seat Auror Shacklebolt.”

Kingsley nodded and sat down as Bones looked at him over her hands. “We have a problem, Auror.”

“A problem, Ma’am?”

“I don’t know where your loyalties lie,” Bones explained, raising a hand to forestall any protest. “Harry Potter was kidnapped yesterday from the Delacour breakfast table. I can’t prove that Albus Dumbledore was involved but given the complexity of the runes used and the power required to rip someone through a ward array, coupled with Dumbledore’s unhealthy obsession with Harry Potter, he seems a likely culprit. Auror Tonks gave me a list of the member of the Order of the Phoenix that she knew about, and an interesting name was at the top of that list. The man who recruited her to be part of Dumbledore’s militia group, you.”

Shacklebolt stared at his frowning boss, allowing her to continue. “As long as you continue to associate with the Order of the Phoenix, you cannot be an effective Auror. So, you have three choices, swear a loyalty oath of the department, you can be suspended without pay pending formal disciplinary proceedings, or you can resign. I will give you a day to consider your options, dismissed.”

* * *

_Chateau Delacour,_ _Neuilly-sur-Seine, France_

Apolline descended the stairs into the dining room where Hermione and Emma were waiting. Hermione immediately stood up and rounded the table. “Is Fleur ok?”

“She will be, I gave her a potion to counteract the effects of the lust potion that was fed to Arry. I hope in the same way the potion affected Fleur via the link the reverse will be true as well.”

Hermione nodded and walked away, wrapping her arms around herself. Emma sent a smile Apolline’s way before she followed Hermione into the living area, enveloping her daughter in a hug. “Are you ok?”

“Yes, I knew Fleur wasn’t herself when she forced herself on me, I’ve seen how she looks at me, at least when she wasn’t staring in jealousy. I know she’s attracted to me, but I think that might be because of Harry,” Hermione replied, blushing.

Emma grinned. “At least you know your boy has good taste, the way you tell it that it is a fierce attraction he has for you.”

Hermione’s blush deepened. “I never thought a boy would be attracted to me like that. I also didn’t think a girl would feel the same.”

“You are worried about Fleur, aren’t you?”

Hermione nodded, allowing Emma to continue. “What prompted the change?”

“Since Harry was kidnapped, Fleur has been my rock, and she keeps reminding me that Harry loves me, and we will get him back. Fleur comforted me last night when I had my nightmare, I’m sure you were ready to comfort me but it being Fleur meant a lot. I know Fleur did it partly not to upset Harry, but she was there for me. I felt safe with her until this morning anyway. The only times I feel safe outside being with you is when I’m with Harry. It was different than being with Harry, but I still felt safe and comforted.”

“Are you reconsidering your position on being part of the Soul Bond?”

“Maybe… I still want to know if Harry wants…”

“Hermione, stop,” Emma said firmly, causing her daughter to fall silent. “You know that Harry wants you, the lust Fleur displayed this morning was an amplified version of what Harry feels, but that can’t leave you in any doubt about his feelings. He loves you, he wants to be with you, he won’t leave you for someone else, I’ve told you this, your friends have told you this, Fleur told you this, and most importantly Harry has told you. I know you’re scared, its understandable, but sometimes the best things in life are worth taking a risk for.”

Hermione nodded as she walked forward and kissed Emma on the cheek. “Thanks, Mum, I’m going upstairs, I… I need to think.”

* * *

_Later…_

_Outside Paris_

Harry was lying on the bed, he could feel the lingering effects of the Lust Potion, but sometime after he’d thrown Ginny out the potion subsided. As he was alone, he’d been able to satiate his urges by thinking about Fleur and Hermione in their bathing suits, something he’d never admit to their faces. As he was beginning to relax the door to the room burst open and Lupin fired off a stunner, that hit Harry in the chest. Harry slumped over, and Snape and Lupin ran into the room, dragging him from the bed into the nearby chair. Dumbledore then swept into the room carrying the potion that Snape brewed. “Open his mouth.”

Snape reached up and pulled Harry’s jaw down as Dumbledore poured the potion down his throat and Lupin cast the same spell Ginny had used earlier to make Harry swallow. The three men stepped back as Harry slumped forward against his shackles that Lupin and Snape had secured. “We will let him rest while the potion does its work. Tomorrow we will return home.”

* * *

_Chateau Delacour,_ _Neuilly-sur-Seine, France_

_26 July 1995_

Hermione emerged from her room the next day and crossed the corridor to meet Fleur as she exited her room. Fleur glanced at Hermione reluctantly. “Hermione, I am desperately sorry that I attacked you yesterday, I’ve never lost control of my Veela side like that before. I am disgusted with myself.”

Hermione shook her head. “You shouldn’t be, you said yourself, someone fed Harry a lust potion and it travelled down the link to affect you. When you realised what you’d done, you locked yourself in your room and refused to come out until the potion subsided. You did everything you could to fight the potion once you realised what was going on. I don’t hold it against you that someone was forcing Harry to submit to his lust. I blame them… Ginny, I blame Ginny.”

Fleur raised a manicured eyebrow. “Are you sure it was her?”

Hermione nodded. “Dumbledore has orchestrated this with help from Remus Lupin, and I’m sure he asked Molly Weasley to help him. If Molly Weasley is involved, she brought Ginny with her to further push her agenda of getting Harry and Ginny together. Molly told Ginny and me that she potioned Arthur Weasley so he would marry her before we went back to Hogwarts last year. I’m sure Molly would have no issue with potioning Harry to get her way.”

“And Ginny is obsessed with Arry and making him her boyfriend; I would feel bad for the girl if she weren’t potioning our boyfriend into doing what she wants.”

Hermione nodded. “Agreed.”

Fleur grinned. “You didn’t dispute that Arry is our boyfriend?”

Hermione shrugged. “I am coming around to the idea.”

“I am glad.”

The two walked downstairs into the dining room, where a regal looking woman sat at the head of the table. Fleur stopped, and her face lit up with a beautiful smile. “Grand-mère!”

Fleur rushed forward and kissed her Grandmother on each cheek. Fleur withdrew and turned back to face Hermione, who had been joined by Emma. “Hermione, Missus Granger, I am pleased to introduce my Grand-mère, Antoinette Delacour, Grand-mère, this is Hermione Granger, and her mother, Emma.”

Antoinette observed the two women over her glasses as she rose from her seat. “Ah, Mister Potter’s other woman and…” Antoinette ran her eyes up and down Emma. “Ah yes, I see.”

Emma crossed her arms, frowning. “What do you see Madam Delacour?”

Antoinette leaned in and whispered something in Emma’s ear, causing the woman to blush. Antoinette stepped back and glanced at Hermione, who felt small under her piercing gaze. Fleur frowned and marched up to place herself between Hermione and her Grandmother. “Grand-mère, stop, Hermione, is not Arry’s _other woman_ she is his girlfriend and the third member of our Soul-Bond if she wants it.”

“It extends to Miss Granger as well?” Antoinette asked.

“Oui, the connection between Arry and I has been muted since the Bond was formed, Maman helped me figure out why. I didn’t want to accept it at first, but Hermione is smart and beautiful, and Arry loves her. They have become my friends, and I care about them deeply, I have fallen in love with Arry, and I can see myself easily falling for Hermione too.”

Antoinette walked up to Fleur and cupped her cheeks. “I shouldn’t have insulted your friend, I am sorry,” Antoinette glanced at Hermione, her expression softened. “To both of you. I love and worry about my eldest Grand Daughter, but I mistreated you.”

“I understand, I worry about Fleur too.”

“So, where is this boy you’ve been bragging about in your letters?”

Hermione and Fleur glanced at each other, frowning. “Arry was kidnapped by Albus Dumbledore a few days ago. Maman and Madam Bones are trying to find him.”

Antoinette crossed her arms and gave Hermione and Fleur a hard stare. “What are you doing to help?”

“Grand-mère there is nothing we can do, I am connected to Arry, but I can only feel strong emotions from him. I can’t see what he sees or communicate, I know those are things you were able to do with your first husband, but until the Bond is complete, I can’t do those things.”

Fleur rolled her eyes slightly at the expression on Hermione’s face at the idea of learning more about Soul Bonds. Antoinette shook her head and waved for Fleur and Hermione to follow. “If I’d known you were entering a Soul Bond, I would have come sooner. Even in an incomplete bond between the two of you, you should be able to help Apolline find your boyfriend.”

The three entered Apolline’s office, and Antoinette opened a cabinet and retrieved a map of France. Antoinette rolled the map out on the table and removed a pendant from around her neck. “This is a charm that has been in our family for many generations. In the past a Soul Bond between a Veela and a chosen Wizard was more common, there was also more competition for our affections. If a love rival kidnapped one or the other, we would use this pendant to find the other person in the Soul Bond.”

“Will the Soul Bond being muted affect the pendant?”

“Non, if the two of you join hands while holding the pendant, it should react the same as if the Bond were complete. You simply need to pour your magic into the pendant and let it do the rest.”

* * *

_Outside Paris_

Dumbledore entered Harry’s cell and observed the younger man over his glasses. “Good morning Harry, how are you feeling?”

“Captive, what about you?”

“Are you ready to return home?”

“Back to Chateau Delacour, sure? When do I leave?”

Dumbledore blinked glancing back at Snape who shared a surprised look with the Headmaster. “No, Harry, to Britain, and Hogwarts?”

Harry sighed. “I have already told you, I am not returning to Hogwarts, why can’t you understand that? You are going, senile old man.”

Dumbledore shook his head and walked out, allowing Lupin to close and lock the door behind him. “Severus, what happened?”

Snape pondered the question for a moment. “The only logical conclusion is that Potter’s magic counteracted the potion.”

“It would take a Wizard of incredible power to resist the influence of the potion,” Lupin added.

Dumbledore shook his head again. “No, that’s not the case.”

Lupin raised an eyebrow. “How can you be sure?”

“There are things I am not ready to share yet, but I am certain they are holding back Young Harry’s potential. Severus review your potion ingredients and when you are ready triple the potency of the potion. Harry _must_ fall into line, failing to do so could doom our world.”

As Dumbledore walked away, Lupin called him back. “Headmaster, why can’t you just explain your reasons, if you calmly talked out your differences, I’m sure a compromise could be reached?”

“I wish I could, but Harry’s immaturity and his unhealthy interest in Miss Delacour and Miss Granger force me to take these actions. They don’t have Harry’s best interests in mind; we cannot trust he would do what is required for the Greater Good.”

Once Dumbledore was gone Lupin turned to Snape. “Do you ever wonder if he’s wrong?”

“Constantly, but I have no choice but to help him, and neither do you.”

The two walked back into the kitchen and the middle of an argument. “Ronald Bilius Weasley, for the last time, I do not have any food for you. You will have to wait until dinner time!” Molly roared.

“But Mum, I’m hungry and bored, there’s nothing to do in this dumb house, you wouldn’t even let me bring my Quidditch magazines with me!”

“You were needed here to help your sister and me. We will return home soon enough, and we will bring Young Harry with us.”

Ron rolled his eyes. “Why should I care about that stupid jerk?”

“Because your sister is in love with him.” Molly reminded.

“Molly, if I may?” Lupin asked, to which Molly nodded. “Ron, there is a Mixed cafe nearby, why don’t you go there and get some sweets for yourself.”

Ron’s eyes lit up as Remus handed him a small bag of Galleons. “Cheers Professor.”

Ron ran out of the house, leaving the three adults alone. Once Molly had gone to check on Ginny, Snape glanced at Lupin. “Was that wise?”

“Possibly not, but his constant complaining was giving me a headache.”

* * *

Outside Ron ran down the street towards the cafe when something gold and shiny attracted his attention. A Galleon sat on the ground in a nearby alleyway. Ron smirked to himself, pleased that it wasn’t just Potter who could spot something small gold and shiny when the need arose. As he entered the alley and leaned down to collect his spoils, he was hit in the back by a stunner.

Several minutes later, Ron blinked and glanced around, wondering what happened. He glanced at the empty ground of the alley and puzzled over why he was standing there. “Oh, right, sweets!”

As the redhead retreated, he was watched from the shadows by a group of Aurors. It wasn’t difficult to extract the information they needed and then Obliviate the stupid boy. They knew how many were involved in the kidnapping of Harry Potter and the exact location of the house.

* * *

_Chateau Delacour,_ _Neuilly-sur-Seine, France_

“Well done, thanks to your efforts we’re almost ready to rescue Arry,” Apolline explained, looking at her daughter, mother, Hermione, and Emma across the desk with Tonks standing beside her. Between them was a map of Paris with the pendant Fleur and Hermione used pinned to the spot in the Aubervilliers Commune the Aurors were monitoring.

“When will you go?”

“My Aurors are simply waiting for me to arrive. I will send Auror Tonks back with news once the operation is complete.”

Without another word, Apolline and Tonks turned and left. Fleur wrapped her arms around Hermione, resting her head on her shoulder. “Soon, we will have our Arry back and safe.”

“I hope so.”

* * *

_Aubervilliers Commune, Seine-Saint-Denis department, Paris France_

“Dumbledore, the Aurors!” Snape warned as he continued to hold Harry’s mouth open while Dumbledore poured the triple strength potion down his throat.

“As long as Harry is under my control, we have nothing to fear from them,” Dumbledore assured him, tossing the vial away as the door burst open. The three men stepped back as Apolline Delacour, and Nymphadora Tonks entered, flanked by half a dozen French Aurors.

“Albus Dumbledore, you are under arrest for kidnapping,” Apolline announced signalling for the Aurors to cuff him after searching him for Portkeys.

“Dear lady, I think if you speak to Young Harry, you’ll find he doesn’t consider what I did kidnapping.”

Tonks walked back to Apolline with the vial in her hand. “They potioned him.”

Apolline nodded. “Take him to the Hospital. I’m sure Mister Snape will be happy to tell us all about the potion he used on the Lord of a Most Noble and Ancient House.”

Snape blanched as he glanced at Dumbledore who continued to smile serenely as the three were dragged away. Remus caught his foot on the door frame and leaned back to address Tonks. “Why did you betray us?”

Tonks snorted a laugh. “I didn’t betray anyone, and I chose my family over the machinations of a stupid and senile old man.”

“Get him out of here.” Apolline hissed.

Tonks walked back to Harry, pulling him free of the straps and cradling his face with a gentle smile. “It’s ok, Harry. We’re here now, and you’ll see Hermione and Fleur soon.”

* * *

_Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital, Paris, France_

_Magical Treatment Wing_

Andromeda emerged from Harry’s room an hour after he, and Tonks landed at the Hospital. “Harry is going to a horrible night, but by tomorrow morning the potion should be purged from his system.”

Hermione smiled brightly. “Thank you.”

Andi returned Hermione’s smile. “You’re welcome.”

“You should all return home and rest. Harry won’t be ready for visitors until tomorrow.”

The women gathered and began moving towards the Floo station, but Tonks hung back for a beat. “Are you going to sleep, Mum?”

“Soon, I need to run a few tests on the potion in Harry’s bloodstream.”

“Do you think something is wrong?”

“Probably not but I want to be sure.”

“Ok, goodnight Mum.”

“Goodnight Nymphadora.”

“Don’t call me that!”

* * *

_27 July 1995_

Harry awoke feeling awful, it had only been a couple of hours since the purging potion had run its course and it would be a few yet before he would be able to keep food down. But Harry knew he was in danger, Headmaster Dumbledore had warned him of how Granger and Delacour weren’t right for him, and now his precious Ginny was locked up in a French jail. Harry needed to escape and return to Britain immediately and speak to Cornelius Fudge. Only Fudge had the power to free his precious future wife, his future in-laws, the Headmaster, Moony, and Professor Snape from their captivity.

Harry quickly and quietly changed out of his hospital gown into some clothes Granger and Delacour had brought him. Harry realised he’d have to ask Missus Weasley to buy him some new clothes and discard the ones those girls had bought him eventually, but they would do for now.

Once Harry had knocked out the unsuspecting Auror Guard who didn’t think much of the threat posed by someone who had a purging potion poured down his throat earlier in the day, using a fluid stand. Harry moved the Auror into his room and tossed him on the floor of the bathroom and threw a blanket over him. Harry had initially wanted to lift the man into his bed, but he was too heavy, and Harry didn’t want to risk using magic.

Harry walked out of the room and in the general direction of the entrance Delacour had led him to the first time he was here. Harry had to duck into various rooms as he walked to avoid the doctors and nurses that were checking on patients but eventually, he made it out of the Hospital.

“Please hold on Ginny. I’ll be back for you.”

* * *

_Chateau Delacour,_ _Neuilly-sur-Seine, France_

Hermione woke up with a start when she heard someone pounding on her door. Crossing the room, she found a slightly manic Fleur standing on the other side as Tonks, and Emma emerged into the corridor. “Fleur, what’s wrong?”

“Something is wrong with Arry!”

**To Be Continued...**


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Harry Potter Franchise or its characters. All characters used are the property of their respective owners.
> 
> This story is rated M for violence, language, & sexual themes.
> 
> A Special Thanks to my Alpha on this story Sakubato.
> 
> This story is a Horcrux free zone.
> 
> If you don’t like the story, don’t read it.
> 
> Note: I am drawing inspiration for the function of the potion from RobSt’s story Banking on Her. I claim no rights to the idea.
> 
> Note 2: Patricia Rakepick is the DADA Professor during the fifth year of the Harry Potter: A Hogwarts Mystery mobile game. I won’t say anything more as it would be a spoiler.
> 
> Warning: Manipulative Dumbledore & Weasley Bashing (Ron, Molly, & Ginny.)

Somewhere in Paris…

25 July 1995

It had been over an hour since Harry had escaped the hospital, his goal was to reach Calais and then sneak onto one of the Cross-Channel Ferries. Harry planned to take the Knight Bus from Dover to London and seek out the Minister. If Harry couldn’t convince Fudge, he planned to use any money he had in his trust vault to bribe the man into rescuing the Weasley’s, Dumbledore, Moony and Snape.

Harry raised his hand to his face and groaned, he still felt very weak from dehydration brought on by the purging potion induced vomiting. He’d bought himself a bottle of water with some of the money he’d lifted from the Auror’s wallet, but it wasn’t much, and the rest was needed for the Bus or Train that would take him from Paris to Calais.

Harry paused, it was still early there were many people on the streets on their way to work but Ginny Weasley’s vibrant red hair was unmistakeable. Harry pushed through the crowd desperate to reach his true love. Harry didn’t want to attract attention to himself but at the same time he couldn’t deny the urge to be with her immediately. “Ginny!”

The young woman turned around and gave him a dazzling smile as she crossed the short distance between them. “Harry! I’m so glad I found you!”

Harry wrapped her in a hug before pulling away and studying her suspiciously. “How can you be here? Didn’t the Aurors take you in?”

“Of course, they did, but Professor Dumbledore is the…” Ginny paused glancing at the crowd around them. “We can’t talk about this here, come on.”

Ginny grabbed Harry’s hand and pulled him forward into the crowd, a minute or two later they slipped into an alley and Ginny pulled Harry towards her as she leant against a wall. “Harry, Professor Dumbledore is the Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards, it was dumb for them to think they could hold him for long.”

Harry nodded. “I guess, but how did you know that?”

Ginny rolled her eyes. “Granger is good for something, occasionally.”

Harry struggled but eventually returned Ginny’s smile. “Only occasionally.”

Ginny grinned as she tugged him down towards her. “We’re spending far too much time talking when we should be snogging.”

Harry’s smile turned into a grin. “You’re right.”

As Harry lent down to capture Ginny’s lips, he fell limp against her and the woman posing as Ginny Weasley transformed into Nymphadora Tonks and returned her wand to its holster. “Sorry, lover boy, your lips are only meant for Fleur and Hermione.”

Appoline Delacour appeared in the alley as she cancelled the disillusionment spell on herself. “Excellent work Auror Tonks, my department could use a good young Auror like yourself.”

Tonks grinned. “Sorry Ma’am, I think Madam Bones would be upset if I started working for you.”

Appoline shrugged. “She’d get over it.”

Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital, Paris, France

Magical Treatment Wing

When Harry woke up, he found himself back in the hospital he’d escaped only hours before. Harry tried to move but found his wrists and ankles tied down in restraints, he pulled against them uselessly until a voice from the end of the bed attracted his attention. “There is no point fight them, they’re mundane restraints modified with magical suppressing runes. I had them add an extra layer of runes given how powerful you are.” Appoline Delacour explained.

“You have no right to keep me here!” Harry yelled.

“Oh? You attacked one of my Aurors as you made your escape, I think that entitles me to keep you here until you’ve been properly examined.”

“Examined for what? I’m fine.” Harry bit back.

“The evidence says otherwise.”

“Please, just let me go, I want to go back to Ginny… I love her.” Harry pleaded.

“Arry, you would not have said that a few days ago… Dumbledore…”

“Professor Dumbledore,” Harry growled. “Helped open my eyes, he made me realise the lies that your daughter and Granger had been feeding me. They poison me against my best friend and my true love.”

“Why would they do that Arry?”

Harry shrugged. “I’m the Boy-Who-Lived, even a Veela can recognise what a boon having me on her arm would be. As for Granger, no one likes her, she’s a walking homework helper, nothing more. They’re nothing compared to my Ginny, they were clearly jealous and needed to keep us apart so they could milk me dry. They did a good job of making me believe they hated each other, I was completely fooled. But then they brainwashed me into believing a lot of things.”

Appoline sighed. “I see. Well, you are entitled to your opinion Mister Potter, but I have a responsibility to my Aurors to defend them from unwarranted attacks. You may be the Boy-Who-Lived but you are also a guest in my country and subject to French Law. You will be notified in due time whether we will be pressing charges, good day.”

As Appoline exited the room she allowed an Auror in to sit with Harry. Appoline had made an error of not having an Auror sit with Harry after they liberated him from Dumbledore, she would not make that mistake a second time. Another Auror was sat outside Harry’s room and a further two were posted in the lobby. Their orders were to put Harry down hard if he made it that far. Appoline didn’t like the idea of hurting the man her daughter loved, but in his current condition and given the earlier error in judgement she knew the precaution was necessary.

Appoline walked down the corridor, passing Harry’s family, Fleur and Auror Tonks as she went. At the other end she found her injured Auror who sat up in bed. “Good afternoon Auror.”

“Good Afternoon, Ma’am.”

“How is your head?”

“Sore, Ma’am, but I will be up and ready for duty tomorrow.”

Appoline smiled to herself, she greatly admired the Aurors who served under her and hoped she repaid that respect with her leadership. “I appreciate your eagerness to return to duty, but I must ask a favour.”

“Anything for you Ma’am.” Her Auror replied eagerly.

“You have relatives in Switzerland, correct?”

“Oui, my parents retired to Bern once my sister and I moved out.”

“Good, for reasons I cannot divulge I need you to take a trip to see them, expect to be away for at least a month. It will be paid, of course.”

The Auror raised an eyebrow. “Does this have anything to do with Mister Potter?”

Appoline frowned but remained silent as the Auror raised his hand to his head. “I’m sorry Ma’am, I don’t think I’ll be able to return to duty as quickly as I thought. I think I’ll need to take some time and visit my parents.”

“Thank you Auror.”

Appoline left the room and walked back towards her daughter, Hermione, mother and daughter Tonks and Emma. Appoline gave Emma a small smile as she turned her attention to the two girls, Fleur was cradling Hermione in her arms, stroking her back soothingly. “It will be ok, cherie, we will figure out what they did and fix it.”

“I should go talk to Harry, I can reach him, I know I can.”

Appoline sighed and tapped Hermione on the shoulder. “I think that’s a bad idea, Arry has been indoctrinated into believing everything Dumbledore says. Arry will not listen, he will deliberately upset you.”

“I…” Hermione paused and finally nodded. “You’re right… If I go in there that thing with Harry’s face is going to yell at me and try to upset me. It won’t just hurt me it’ll hurt Harry too, he shoulders the blame for things that aren’t his fault all the time, I won’t let this be another one.”

Fleur smiled and nodded. “You’re right, for now we need to go home and start researching for a cure. We will not lose Arry to that red-headed… salope.”

Appoline rolled her eyes. “Language, flower.”

“I am not wrong,” Fleur replied.

Office of the Bureau de la Justice Magique, Paris, France

26 July 1995

Dumbledore rose from his seat and smiled as Cornelius Fudge entered his holding cell. The younger man looked annoyed as he removed his bowler hat and began running his fingers over the rim nervously. “What do you want Dumbledore, I don’t have time for your games today.”

“Would you like to sit down Cornelius?”

Fudge’s eyes widened sharply. “No, I would not like to sit down, you’ve dropped us both into a metric tonne of Dragon shit Albus. You kidnapped the Boy-Who-Lived, the ICW is holding an emergency session as we speak to remove you Supreme Mugwump. I am getting howlers by the hour demanding you be removed from your post both as the Headmaster of Hogwarts and Chief Wizard and yet I am here at your request. Tell me what you want so I can leave.”

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow. “I’m surprised you let word of my… activities in France reach the press.”

Fudge pulled a newspaper from his coat and threw it onto the table Dumbledore was sitting at. “It was in the International Press. Nothing has been reported in the Daily Prophet, but enough people subscribe that I’m getting a headache.”

Dumbledore sighed and turned the paper over to hide the shot of him being led away in Magic Suppressing Handcuffs. “I can only say that I did what I did for the Greater Good.”

“I don’t care why, you are not my problem anymore Dumbledore, by the end of the hour you will have been removed from your positions of power. After that you will be brought before the ICW to answer for what you’ve done. The only reason I came here was to tell you, you will not be receiving any assistance from my administration.”

“You would abandon me in my hour of need, Cornelius?”

Fudge let out a huff. “You did this to yourself Dumbledore, you made the rod for your back, not me.”

As Fudge turned to leave Dumbledore spoke again. “You would abandon me, knowing what I know about you?”

Fudge paused and turned around again, deciding to indulge Dumbledore one final time. “What do you think you know, Albus?”

Dumbledore grinned. “I know about the bribes you’ve taken…”

Fudge laughed as he spoke. “I have taken no such thing, any campaign contributions made by certain disgraced members of our society were registered with the Ministry at the time they were made. Any suggestions to the contrary are slander.”

“But what became of those… contributions after they were made? They were never deposited at Gringotts. You see, on one of my many trips to the Hague for ICW business I happened to detour through Switzerland on my way back. I’ve always had a good relationship with the Gnomes, and when I happened to mention you, they let slip that you’re a valued customer of theirs,” Dumbledore explained, omitting that he’d gotten this particular Gnome quite drunk on elf wine before enquiring about Fudge. “Of course, you are aware that the Gnomes and Goblin’s have been in a state of detente for hundreds of years, it would be unfortunate if Gringotts found out the Minister of Magic was secretly funnelling Goblin gold to their enemies.”

Fudge paled considerably. “Y-you wouldn’t…”

“No, of course not my good man, but I would feel… compelled to inform Madame Delacour of any maleficence I was aware of before being presented to the ICW. To lighten the burden on my soul, you understand.”

“You can’t prove anything,” Fudge spat angrily.

Dumbledore raised his hands. “No, no of course not, but we have to consider what the Goblins will think. They may have their own ways of discovering whether this is true or not.”

Fudge sat down in the chair opposite Dumbledore, ashen-faced if the Goblins could prove he was moving money to Switzerland it would be the end of him. Fudge knew that he couldn’t hide behind Wizengamot, the Goblins had Wizards held by the purse strings. One night he would go to bed and the next day he would be gone, if he were lucky, he would spend his days shovelling Dragon shit, if he were unlucky, he would end up being Dragon shit. “What do you want?”

Dumbledore smiled. “I would think that would be obvious, of course I will need the Weasley’s, Remus Lupin and Severus Snape released as well.”

Fudge glared at Dumbledore incredulously. “You think I have that power?”

“I believe if you speak to Mister Potter you will find he is most cooperative. If there is no complaining witness, there is no crime.”

“Are you sure Albus, from what I’ve been told Mister Potter has made his contempt for you clear on several occasions.”

“Yes, but I suspect that is the influence of Miss Granger and her Veela accomplice, they’ve been trying to poison Young Harry against his real friends for some time. The kidnapping charge was filed my Miss Delacour’s mother, in Harry they see a golden opportunity to advance the Veela agenda in the ICW. Whether Miss Granger is a willing participant or simply a lovesick teenager is up for debate. Although I hope that if Miss Granger follows Young Harry back to Hogwarts and without the influence of Miss Delacour, she will see that this is best for both of them.”

“If I go along with this, I want something from you as well, Albus.”

“And what would that be, Cornelius?”

“I want a Ministry employee appointed as Hogwarts Defence Against Dark Arts teacher, for too long I’ve allowed you to hire teachers on a whim, and they’ve all failed to stay more than a year. You’ve also hired some people wholly unsuitable for the role, Patricia Rakepick, Remus Lupin, and Alastor Moody immediately spring to mind. I want someone I can trust in the position, someone who will not deviate from the Ministry approved curriculum like so many of her predecessors. You will agree to this Albus, or I will not help you.”

Dumbledore leaned back in his seat and frowned. “I assume you have someone in mind?”

“Delores Umbridge, my Senior Undersecretary, she will do a find job.”

Dumbledore frowned, he was well aware of the unabashed bigot that was Delores Umbridge, and he was reticent to allow her near the castle, let alone the position of DADA Professor, but he didn’t have a choice. “Very well, once I am free have Madam Umbridge report to the castle, I will personally show her the Professor’s quarters.”

“I also want you to support my candidate for Chief Wizard.”

Dumbledore blanched at the thought. “Surely there is no need…”

“You are finished as Chief Wizard Dumbledore, both the light and dark are moving to replace you. They see weakness and they’re moving to remove you. They don’t care what you actually did, the only care that there is an opening they can exploit.”

“An opening you can exploit…” Dumbledore replied bitterly.

Fudge smiled and shrugged. “I don’t deny it, I wouldn’t be where I am if I didn’t recognise an opportunity to get ahead. So, will you support my candidate?”

“Who did you have in mind?” Dumbledore asked apprehensively.

“Cyril Parkinson, he is a close personal friend and I feel he will make an excellent Chief Wizard,” Fudge explained, Dumbledore knew Parkinson was a close personal friend of Fudge’s the same way Malfoy had been, but let it pass without comment, instead simply nodding.

Fudge nodded. “Good, there is one last thing. While Mister Potter may not be the complaining witness to this kidnapping, I have no power to release Severus Snape. Snape assisted in the plot to attack Mister Potter at his relatives’ home, an attack that resulted in Lucius Malfoy attempting to cast an Unforgivable curse at the head of this department. Snape is wanted for questioning on that matter and other matters related to his time as a Death Eater. No amount of horse-trading will secure his release.”

Dumbledore frowned and nodded. “I see, perhaps a quiet word in the right ear would make them see Severus in a more sympathetic light.”

Fudge sighed and looked away. “Dumbledore, your influence only reaches so far, and regardless of the truth of the matter some people will consider what you did, kidnapping. Many of those people are members of the ICW, you are done as Supreme Mugwump. Your only course of action is to return to the embrace of Mother England.”

“As you say Cornelius…” Dumbledore replied dejectedly.

“I will speak with Mister Potter and then arrange for your release. It should not take more than a day or so,” Fudge explained collecting his Bowler hat. Fudge smiled to himself as he moved towards the door, if he managed to get Dumbledore released this would be a good bargaining chip to use when next needed his help with a piece of legislation that came through the Wizengamot. Even if Dumbledore was removed as Chief Wizard, he still had enough friends to call on to make it worthwhile.

“Thank you, Cornelius, I will see you soon.”

Once Fudge was gone Dumbledore sat in silent contemplation. Dumbledore had faith his hold on Harry Potter would not waiver, the only danger to his control was if Andromeda Tonks or Sirius Black got involved. Dumbledore knew he needed a way to wrest Guardianship from the Black’s. Once that was done Dumbledore would send Harry to the Weasley’s for the remainder of Summer. There, without the influence of Granger or the Veela, Harry would realise his feelings for Ginny and further cement himself with a family Dumbledore approved of.

Dumbledore knew it was only a matter of time before Tom made another attempt to return, one of his followers was sure to have a Horcrux in their possession. The time was approaching to have Harry begin hunting for Tom’s Horcruxes, Dumbledore had been relying on Granger to lead Harry through the process if he couldn’t be there, but Dumbledore was now worried about how reliable she would be. If Severus wasn’t available, then it would be up to Horace to devise a potion to keep Granger in line. Dumbledore needed them both for the same and different reasons, he could use a different Witch, but no one would be a match for Granger in terms of power and intelligence. It had to be Granger, no one else would do.

Elsewhere…

Harry sat against a wall, glaring at the man wearing his face. The man in question was sat on the other side of the featureless room Harry had found himself in since Dumbledore poured that potion down his throat. Harry had deduced that he was trapped inside his own mind, he could see out and he could hear what was going on, but he couldn’t act. The man with his face sitting across the room was in control, a simpering wimp who swallowed everything Dumbledore fed him, someone who adored Ginny Weasley beyond reason and thought of Molly Weasley as a mother figure and Ron as a friend. It made Harry angry, but what made Harry angrier was the way he talked about Hermione and Fleur. Harry wanted to walk over and beat the ever-loving shit out of the man wearing his face, but he was worried about unforeseen damage to his psyche. Harry didn’t know enough about how the brain worked to make any kind of guess about what attacking himself inside his mind would do.

So instead Harry chose to wait, he had faith in Fleur and Hermione to figure out a way to remove this parasite from his mind. Then Harry would take his time destroying the people who’d tried to hurt him, Snape, Lupin, the Weasley’s and finally Dumbledore. Harry felt sort of bad for Bill, Charlie, the Twins and Arthur, but they’d done nothing to curtail Ron, Ginny, and Molly, so they would suffer the consequences as well. Harry held no love for Remus Lupin, at one time he did, at one time he admired the man, but now he was just another one of Dumbledore’s misguided lackeys, a man to be pitied but not spared.

Snape, Harry would leave to the tender mercies of the ICW, they’d already locked up his good friend Lucius Malfoy so Harry decided he wouldn’t take the direct approach to deal with him. Harry would wait and monitor the situation, but if he ever got a hint Snape was planning to hurt Harry or his family again, well, he wouldn’t get the chance.

That just left Dumbledore, the source of all Harry’s woes. Harry knew he’d need everyone’s help to take on Dumbledore, it wouldn’t be quick or easy to ruin a reputation that took a lifetime to build, but he still owed Rita Skeeter an interview, that would be a good first step.

Harry looked up when fake Harry sighed contently, he almost rolled his eyes, the fake was looking at a conjured picture of Ginny Weasley. It made him want to throw up, again. He’d liked Ginny before all of this, he was a sweet girl if a bit smitten, but after everything that had happened, the potions and assisting Malfoy with the attempted rape of Fleur and Hermione he’d never forgive her. Molly and Ginny were the main subject of his ire, Ron was just a stupid walking stomach, he was an asshole to be sure, but if Ron left him alone he would leave Ron alone, but Harry was almost sure that wouldn’t happen.

“There has to be another way out of this, I just have to figure out what it is. Think Potter, what would Hermione do?” Harry asked himself, he knew the answer, she’d go to the library, sadly there were no libraries inside his mind, so he’d have to do what he did best, think on his feet.

Office of the Bureau de la Justice Magique, Paris, France

Snape was led into an interrogation room by Nymphadora Tonks and forced to sit down in the chair near the door. Once Snape was seated he was shackled to the chair but neither Auror that had accompanied him from his cell put away their wands as Appoline Delacour and Andromeda Tonks entered. “What is she doing here?”

Appoline glanced at Andi and then back to Snape as she sat down at the table which was positioned at least six feet away from Snape. “Medi-Witch Tonks is here as an expect on potions, she will fill in the gaps in my knowledge.”

Snape snorted a laugh. “You expect me to tell you anything?”

“I would think, Mister Snape, that helping me now is preferable to a lifetime in an ICW prison in a cell next to your friend Lucius Malfoy. Once you are dosed with Vertiaserum there will be no hope of you avoiding a lifetime prison sentence.”

Snape sneered at the French Veela. “Dumbledore wouldn’t let that happen.”

A small smile appeared on Appoline’s face. “Mister Dumbledore isn’t in a position to help, even if he manages to escape punishment for what he’s done he’s already been removed as Supreme Mugwump of the ICW. There are moves afoot in Great Britain to replace Dumbledore as Chief Wizard as well I understand. I am your only friend here Mister Snape, co-operate with me and we can negotiate for a better deal for you with the ICW.”

Snape scowled and looked down at the floor, he weighed his options silently, Voldemort was dead, killed moments after his resurrection by the Potter brat and Dumbledore’s grip on power was being stripped from him. Snape had no desire to spend the rest of his life in an ICW prison, but he also resisted against the idea of helping Potter in any way. In the end, self-preservation won out. “Very well, I will tell you what I know.”

“We will be using Vertiaserum to verify the truth of your words,” Appoline advised him.

“I understand,” Snape replied, tipping his head back and opening his mouth, a few seconds later the younger Tonks poured three drops of Vertiaserum into Snape’s mouth and he swallowed.

“Is your name Severus Snape?”

“Yes.”

“Are you a Professor at Hogwarts?”

“Yes.”

“Are you a Death Eater?”

“Yes.”

“Did you give Lucius Malfoy Arry Potter’s mundane address?”

“Yes.”

“How did you find that information?”

“I looked up Petunia Evans information in the Registry of Birth Death’s and Marriages in London…”

“Who is Petunia Evans?”

“Lily’s sister.”

“Lily Potter?”

“Lily Evans.”

“Lily Evans was Lily Potter’s maiden name?”

“Yes.”

“Continue.”

“Petunia married a man named Vernon Dursley, the Dursley’s lived at Number 4 Privet Drive in Surrey. I knew Potter went back to his muggles relatives every summer, so it wasn’t hard to figure out these were the relatives in question.”

“What was in the potion that you gave to Harry Potter?” Appoline asked.

Snape listed off the ingredients which Andromeda took note of, she frowned as she stared at the list. “Why didn’t the purging potion clear it from Harry’s system?”

Snape grinned, even through the Vertiaserum. “The potion poisons the mind, and strips them of freewill, even after a purging potion is administered the potion is still being absorbed into the body. It’s fast-acting, triply so in Potter’s case.”

“You gave Arry a triple strength dose of the potion, why?”

“The first dose didn’t work, Lupin suggested it was because Potter’s magic was fighting the control. Dumbledore dismissed that notion but still ordered me to triple the strength of the next dose.”

“You poisoned him!” Andromeda spat angrily.

Snape’s grin widened. “I would not complain if that had been the case.”

“How did you know about this potion?” Appoline asked, cutting into the argument between Snape and Andi.

“I created the recipe for Lord Voldemort, he wanted a more permanent solution to the Imperious Curse, after the Dark Lord fell, I continued to work on it in secret, refining the potion and making it more effective.”

Appoline frowned. “Did you test it on anyone?”

“Muggles, no one of consequence.”

“What did you make them do?” Appoline asked as a shudder ran through her.

“They performed for me, or killed for me, it depended on my mood,” Snape replied.

Appoline’s hands curled into fists as she shook with anger. “Is there a cure?”

Snape almost laughed. “No, Potter is permanently changed, he will never listen to Granger of his Veela Whore again. The potion has permanently re-written his mind so he will only listen to Dumbledore, there is no going back.”

“The potion was only in his system a few hours…” Andromeda spat.

“I told you already…” Snape began but Appoline waved him away. “Yes, we heard you, Auror, stay here and get a list of all the mundane people he harmed testing this potion. I’m sure the mundane authorities in England will find that list most enlightening.”

“Yes, Madame Delacour.”

Appoline gave a small nod to the Auror and then summoned Andi and Nym to follow her. Once they were out of the room and down the corridor, Nymphadora spoke. “Are you going to tell Hermione and Fleur?”

“I don’t have a choice, they need to know there might not be any way to save Arry.”

Department of Magical Law Enforcement, London, GB

Office of Amelia Bones

Bones looked up when she heard a knock on her door and her lips became a thin line when it opened to reveal Arthur Weasley. “Good afternoon Amelia, you wanted to see me?”

“Yes Arthur, please sit down.”

Arthur complied and Bones took a deep breath. “I am saddened to report that your wife and two youngest children were arrested yesterday in France…”

“What?! Why were they in France, I thought they were helping Dumbledore with something…” Arthur exclaimed as he rose out of his seat.

“They were Arthur, you’ve heard of course that Harry Potter was kidnapped?”

Arthur blinked owlishly. “N-no, I hadn’t…”

Amelia sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose. “The Daily Prophet once again making a hash of things, here, look at this.”

Amelia presented Arthur with one of the international wizarding newspapers that had gone out that morning, half the front page was filled with a photo of Albus Dumbledore being led out of a house in handcuffs. Above the picture was the headline:

POTTER KIDNAPPING SOLVED

Albus Dumbledore and accomplices implicated

Arthur leaned back in his chair, with a pale shocked expression on his face. “Molly, Ginny, and Ron…?”

Amelia nodded. “They along with Severus Snape and Remus Lupin assisted Dumbledore in kidnapping Harry and potioning him.”

“B-but, why, to what end?”

“I don’t know the reasons for Dumbledore’s pursuit of Harry, apart from controlling all aspects of his life, but I am led to believe Ginny is worryingly obsessed with becoming Harry’s wife and Molly has fed that idea. As for Ron… I can only guess.”

Arthur ran a hand over his face, to Bones he looked scared and listless, like a man adrift at sea. “Arthur, your wife and Ron are being held by the French Ministry, but Ginny is being held for mental observation.”

“Mental…? Why?”

Amelia sighed. “Arthur, your daughter fixated on Harry Potter to the exclusion of all else. It is normal to have a crush, it’s not normal to force a boy to swallow a lust potion in the hopes he’ll have sex with you.”

“Don’t be ridiculous! My daughter would never do that!” Arthur bellowed, finally finding his fire.

“The French Auror’s searched Ginny’s belongings with the assistance of Auror Tonks, they found several bottles of Lust potion and an empty vial. Tests on Harry taken after he was rescued confirmed the lingering traces of a lust potion in his system. We haven’t been able to question Ginny about her intentions or what she did to help Dumbledore, but her reaction upon being brought in raised red-flags.”

“Red flags?”

“Arthur, she scratched, bit, kicked and clawed at the Aurors who tried to cuff her, all the while screaming for Harry. All Ginny has talked about since being detained is how Harry will save her. Ginny hasn’t asked about the well being of her mother or whether she can see Molly. Ginny needs help Arthur, she needs to go somewhere otherwise she may end up committed.”

Arthur’s eyes widened. “You can’t do that!”

“No, I can’t, but the French authorities can if they feel that Ginny is a danger to herself and others and given the facts in evidence, I would say its highly likely it will go that way.”

“I can’t… I mean I want to get Ginny help, but we can’t afford it. I can’t help my daughter…” Arthur moaned as he buried his head in his hands.

Amelia wanted to feel bad for Arthur, but he’d spent years letting Molly walk all over him instead of instilling discipline in his children. Amelia pressed a button on her desk and an Auror entered. “Please take Mister Weasley somewhere quiet and make him a cup of tea.”

“Yes, Ma’am.”

Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital, Paris, France

Magical Treatment Wing

Cornelius Fudge glanced around worriedly as he made his way through the Hospital towards the Magical Treatment Wing, he was eager to speak to Harry and then the French Minister of Magic and then return home. Fudge didn’t like being away from home and away from the comforts, he’d become accustomed. Fudge stopped in front of the reception desk and gave a short nod to the pretty receptionist. “I am looking for Harry Potter, I am the British Minister for Magic and I wanted to check on him.”

Fudge showed his credentials and the receptionist nodded. “Room 302 Minister.”

Fudge nodded and walked away, as he did one of the Aurors stationed in the reception room conjured a messenger Patronus. “Madame Delacour, the English Minister just arrived to see Harry Potter…”

Harry smiled when Fudge entered his room, Cornelius nervously returned the smile as he walked to Harry’s bed. “Ah, young Harry, it’s good to see you, are you well?”

Harry glanced at the Auror sitting at the end of his bed and then back to Fudge. “I’m ok Minister, although I’d be happier if I weren’t restrained.”

Fudge glanced down at the cuffs on Harry’s wrists and ankles and turned to the Auror. “Are they necessary?”

“Minister Fudge, after we brought Mister Potter in from where he was being detained, he attacked one of my fellow Aurors and escaped. Madame Appoline believes its best that Mister Potter be restrained while under the hospital’s care,” The Auror explained.

“Yes, well, we’ll soon have that figured out,” Fudge replied dismissively turning back to Harry. “I am of the understanding you don’t want to press charges again Headmaster Dumbledore, the Weasley family and Mister Lupin?”

“That’s right, and Professor Snape as well,” Harry added.

“Unfortunately, I can’t help in his case…” Fudge replied mentally adding, ‘nor would I want too’. “But if you give me a written statement of events as you believe them to be true, I will petition the French Minister of Magic to get them released.”

“After that can we go home?” Harry asked hopefully.

“That is the intention, yes,” Fudge replied.

“That may be your intention Minister, but that is not how things work in France,” A voice from the door replied, the two men looked up to see Appoline Delacour enter the room.

“I was under the impression if there was no complaining witness there was no crime, Madame Delacour, if that’s the case then Headmaster Dumbledore, the Weasley family, and Remus Lupin should be released.”

“You are correct, if Mister Potter does not wish to press charges, we have no choice but to release them. Mister Potter on the other hand still has charges pending related to his assault on my Auror. He is to be held under observation until a court date can be arranged.”

“I’m sure if I speak to the Auror in question we’ll have the sorted out quickly enough…” Fudge began.

Appoline’s lip twitched slightly as she fought off a grin. “Unfortunately, the Auror in question has left the country for an unspecified amount of time to recuperate. Without him, we will be unable to proceed.”

“That’s outrageous, you can’t just hold this young man indefinitely!” Fudge protested.

“I have no intention of holding him indefinitely. But he has been assessed as a threat to himself and others, we have no choice to hold him here. I will not risk my Aurors or other French Citizens by allowing Mister Potter to roam free when we don’t know if he will attack someone. You may speak to the Minister, but I have already explained the situation and she has agreed with my assessment.”

Fudge scowled at Appoline as he worried the brim of his hat. “Yes, well, I will take this up with the ICW as soon as possible,” Fudge replied putting a piece of parchment and a quill in front of Harry. “Please write out your statement for me Mister Potter and I will make sure the Headmaster and the others are released by day’s end. And then the Headmaster and I will work on returning you home.”

Harry nodded as he glared at Appoline and took the quill from Fudge. “Thank you, Minister.”

Chateau Delacour, Neuilly-sur-Seine, France

Hermione sat staring down at the potions book she’d been studying before Appoline came to visit, she worked over the information in her mind as tears threatened to run down her cheeks. “So, Pr… Mister Snape thinks there is no cure?”

“That was what he told us, yes,” Appoline replied.

Hermione scowled looking up and wiping the tears away with her sleeve. “That’s rubbish, no potion is infallible, he may be a potions master, but he doesn’t know everything. I…” Hermione paused and looked over at Fleur who was sitting beside her. “We will find a way to get Harry back.”

Appoline smiled at the younger girl, she had faith in them, but Snape’s confidence worried her, not that she’d tell Fleur or Hermione. “I know you will, but we have a short window to find and develop a cure. Harry wants to return to England and Minister Fudge is petitioning the French Ministry to release him. We’ve bought some time because the Auror Arry assaulted has left the country to recuperate, but we can’t hold him forever. I need you to find a cure soon.”

Hermione gave a determined nod and returned to her book, scribbling down some notes on a piece of paper. Fleur gave her mother a small smile before returning to her work. When Appoline stepped outside she found Emma waiting for her. “Do you think they’ll find it in time?”

Appoline closed the door as she replied. “If there even is an it, I hope so.”

Emma let her fingers drift up Appoline’s arm. “Do you have to return to the office right away?”

Appoline grinned. “I can take a long lunch.”

Emma grinned grabbing Appoline’s hand and leading her towards the master bedroom. “Good.”

28 July 1995

St-Germain-des-Prés, Paris, France

Fleur let out a huff as she walked past a group of men who stopped and stared despite wearing her allure suppressing pendant. Regardless of whether Fleur was wearing it her beauty still drew stares. Fleur had spent the last two days in the library with Hermione, researching, even now Hermione still had her head buried in a book and Fleur didn’t think she’d come up for air for some time. Fleur wanted to save Harry as much as Hermione, but she needed a break a chance to clear her head and re-evaluate the situation. Something had brought her to St-Germain-des-Prés and her favourite bookstore Rue Saint-Andre des Arts. Fleur gave a smile and a nod to the owner as she entered, Fleur spent a few minutes browsing the isles before she stopped cold.

In the isle, Fleur had just passed there was a woman who had worked in the store for as long she’d visited to buy books. They’d exchanged the odd word and a mutual smile from time to time, Fleur thought the older woman with long flame-red hair was pretty but never thought about her beyond that. Today was different, she recognised the woman from Harry’s photo album but hadn’t made the connection until she was standing in front of her.

The woman looked up and smiled at Fleur. “Bonjour, may I help you?’

Fleur stared at her wide-eyed for a moment before shaking her head to regain her senses. “Are you… excuse me, is your name Lily?”

To Be Continued…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be clear, there are no Horcruxes, but that doesn’t mean as previously mentioned, that Riddle didn’t try or that Dumbledore believes there aren’t any.
> 
> If anyone missed it, you should go back to read the previous chapter for context. There were issues with FFN when I uploaded Chapter 12. I also post this story on Ao3 if you’d prefer to read and review there. There is no difference between the two to be clear.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Harry Potter Franchise or its characters. All characters used are the property of their respective owners.
> 
> This story is rated M for violence, language, & sexual themes.
> 
> A Special Thanks to my Alpha on this story Sakubato.
> 
> This story is a Horcrux free zone.
> 
> If you don’t like the story, don’t read it.
> 
> Note: Can anyone find the two Doctor Who references I snuck into this chapter?
> 
> Note 2: I am drawing inspiration for the function of the potion from RobSt’s (FFN) story Banking on Her. I claim no rights to the idea.
> 
> Note 3: The International Wizarding Times is a creation of La Morraine (FFN) for their story Dobby’s Deceit and is being used with permission.
> 
> Note 4: Nick Carlstrom is my Player Character from Harry Potter: A Hogwarts Mystery.
> 
> Warning: Manipulative Dumbledore & Weasley Bashing (Ron, Molly, & Ginny.)

28 July 1995

St-Germain-des-Prés, Paris, France

The woman looked up and smiled at Fleur. “Bonjour, may I help you?’

Fleur stared at her wide-eyed for a moment before shaking her head to regain her senses. “Are you… excuse me, is your name Lily?”

The woman with flame-red hair and piercing green eyes raised an eyebrow and smiled cordially. “I’m sorry, no, my name is Verity, I think you have me mistaken for someone else,” Verity replied with what was an English accent.

“Je suis désolé, you look like my b…friend’s mother. I thought she may have come to visit.”

“No, I wish I had a son but… my husband and I were never blessed…”

Fleur forced a smile as she grabbed a random book off the shelf and walked to the front of the shop to pay for it. Fleur practically ran down the street back to the apparition point for that part of Paris and apparated back home.

Chateau Delacour, Neuilly-sur-Seine, France

As soon as Fleur entered the house, she spotted a weary Tonks walking down the stairs. “Auror Tonks, I need you!”

Tonks blinked and then grinned. “I’ve been dying to hear you say that!”

Fleur rolled her eyes grabbing Tonks by the hand. “Get your mind out of the gutter, this is important!”

Fleur dragged Tonks through the house and into her mother’s office where Emma was perched on the edge of Appoline’s desk engaging in a heated kiss with the blonde woman in question. The two quickly broke apart but Fleur all ignored them in favour of addressing the encounter she’d just had. “Mother, Lily Potter is alive.”

The brought the room to a crashing halt as Tonks and Appoline stared at Fleur in bewilderment while Emma looked on confused but quickly spoke up. “Hermione has mentioned Lily in her letters, she is Harry’s mother?”

“Oui, she died protecting Arry from Voldemort on Halloween night nineteen eighty-one, she is not alive Flower, she is dead,” Appoline explained turning back to her daughter.

“She is alive, I just saw her working in a bookshop in St-Germain-des-Prés. Get out the family Pensive and I will show you.”

Appoline gave her daughter a reluctant nod and turned to a cabinet behind her desk, channelling her magic into the door she unlocked it and removed a stone basin while Fleur extracted the memory in question. Seconds later Appoline, Tonks, and Emma dove into Fleur’s memory and emerged a few minutes later. Appoline had a contemplative look on her face. “Oui, that does look like the pictures I’ve seen of Lily Potter. But Lily Potter is supposed to be dead.”

“According to whom?” Fleur pressed already suspecting the answer.

Appoline frowned. “Dumbledore.”

“Was there no autopsy performed on the bodies?” Emma asked.

Appoline shook her head. “Non, there was a quick funeral followed by burial in Godric’s Hollow. After Lord Black was sent to Azkaban and the Longbottom’s being attacked there were very few who would have called themselves close friends of the Potters and the wider public wanted to forget the war as soon as possible. The international wizarding press followed the death of Voldemort quite extensively at the time,” Appoline elaborated. “The family of the Boy-Who-Lived were subjected to lengthy profiles in the wake of their deaths or supposed deaths.”

“We all know Dumbledore has an unhealthy obsession with Arry, what if this obsession is not new, what if it dates back to when he was a baby?” Fleur hypothesized.

Appoline frowned and considered the suggestion. “It would not explain how Lily Potter is alive, or why she is working in a Paris bookshop you frequent. Or why you were able to find her there.”

Fleur shrugged. “For the first two questions I have no answer, but today I felt a pull on my magic. Something I’d not felt before. I now know what it was, it was the pull of familial magic. The bond made me seek out Arry’s mother.”

“But why now, you’ve both been in France for weeks, why would that work only now?” Appoline pressed.

“I don’t know Maman, all I know is that Lily Potter is alive and now we have two people to save, not just Arry!” Fleur bit back angrily.

“Lily Potter is alive?” Hermione asked from the door.

“Hermione, I’m sorry, I should have come to get you,” Fleur replied walking over to the door and taking Hermione’s hand. Emma frowned when she saw the bags under Hermione’s eyes and pale colouration of her skin.

“This is a memory of my encounter with a woman I believe to be Lily Potter, but she calls herself Verity, we’re not sure why?”

Fleur played back the memory for Hermione who nodded. “That certainly looks like Lily Potter, she would be Thirty-Five now. This woman’s eyes certainly remind me of Harry,” Hermione commented turning to Appoline. “What are you planning to do?”

“Hermione, there is not much I can do, my providence is magical crimes and enforcing French magical law. I have no authority over a mundane woman who looks like Lily Potter…” Appoline stated but at the stares of her daughter and Hermione, she sighed. “But I suppose running a check on her residency with my mundane counterparts would not do any harm.”

“How will you do that, you only have her first name and a description?” Emma asked.

“We can take an image from the Pensive and use it to create a mundane photo, from that we can search the visa database of the Ministre de l'Intérieur, We can decide how to proceed once we have that information.”

“Ok, I’m going back to the library…” Hermione replied turning around but was stopped by Emma.

“No, you’re not, you’re having a meal and a few hours’ sleep,” Emma ordered.

“Mum, I can’t, I need…”

“You need to rest Hermione, you won’t do Harry any good if you collapse sick from lack of quality sleep and food. Do you think he’d want that, of either of you?”

Hermione and Fleur looked away shamefully. “No.”

“Right, then its time for lunch. Appoline, Tonks, would you care to join us?”

Appoline and Tonks both smiled and shook their heads. “Non, we will return to the office, we should start the search for information on the woman we think is Lily Potter immediately.”

“I’ll help and then check on Harry, he’s sure to be as surly as ever.”

Hermione cocked an eyebrow. “Are you sure he was potioned, that sounds like normal Harry behaviour to me?”

“Oui, I concur.”

Hermione gave Fleur a weak smile as Emma dragged them off to the dining room. Tonks walked up and looked down at the image of the woman they hoped was Lily Potter. “If Lily is alive, what the hell did Dumbledore do?”

“I will be sure to ask him,” Appoline assured the young Auror.

Office of the Bureau de la Justice Magique, Paris, France

Dumbledore slipped his glasses into the top pocket of his robes and gave them a gentle pat as he readied himself to leave the holding area of the French DMLE offices. Fudge had successfully petitioned the French Minister for Magic to have the Weasleys, Remus, and himself released into his custody as long as they left France immediately. Dumbledore was happy to comply, as long as Harry went with them. Dumbledore knew that as long as Harry returned with them to England that Granger would inevitably follow. Granger was smitten with the boy, she would go where her heart directed and for now, at least her heart desired young Harry. Once they were back at Hogwarts Granger’s feelings could be re-directed to Ronald, at least until his plans for her became viable. But that would not be for another couple of years, Granger needed to mature before he brought young Harry and Granger together that way.

Dumbledore smiled as he spotted Fudge entering the room. “Ah Cornelius, here to celebrate my release from unjust detainment?”

Fudge frowned. “No Albus, I am not, I am here to make sure you promptly return to England with me and to tell you, you’ve lost your position as Supreme Mugwump. The final vote was held this morning, it was an overwhelming majority.”

Dumbledore sighed. “That is unfortunate, but no great loss, I was planning to resign soon anyway,” He replied, although it was a loss of prestige Dumbledore could still manipulate things from behind the scenes. The ICW had frustrated him in recent times, becoming, in his view, more bloodthirsty over the years and handing out unjust punishments to those he felt could be reformed. The people incarcerated only needed his guidance to find the path to forgiveness and light, if only Gellert had been able to forgive himself he wouldn’t have gone down the dark path that Tom Riddle tread years later. Tom never forgave his father for abandoning his mother and thus making him an orphan and Harry had almost followed that destructive path, but Dumbledore thankfully recognised the signs this time and stepped in before it was too late.

“We will depart as soon as we’ve collected the Weasleys, Remus, and young Harry,” Dumbledore assured him.

Fudge shook his head. “Harry Potter will not be returning to England with us.”

Dumbledore’s eyes widened. “What?”

“He tried to escape Auror custody and in doing so assaulted the guard who was stationed outside his room. The guard is recuperating in another country and is therefore out of contact. I discussed this with the Minister but as there is a pending investigation against Potter, he will remain in France for the time being.”

“Then I must stay as well, I cannot leave young Harry here when he’s in such a fragile state…” Dumbledore began moving towards the doors of the holding area.

“No Albus, you will not. The Minister wants you out of France as soon as possible, you do not have the protection of the ICW anymore. If you push this the Minister will have Potter declared legally incompetent and re-file the charges against you, once that is done you will be transferred into ICW custody and at that point, I cannot help you anymore.”

Dumbledore paled, if he were placed in ICW custody he would be subject to questioning under Vertiaserum, and his secrets would become known. Appoline Delacour had not been able to question him using the truth potion because he was still Supreme Mugwump at the time, that gave him a level of protection he no longer had. Dumbledore relented and nodded. “Of course, but I will pursue this once we return to England you understand.”

“I don’t care what you do once we return to England, as long as you keep…” Fudge paused and glanced back at the Auror at the desk and stepped in closer to Dumbledore and lowered his voice. “As long as you honour our deal.”

“I have every intention Cornelius,” Dumbledore lied, he would install Umbridge as Defence Professor for the coming year but everyone was aware of the curse and he was sure that the toadyish woman would be out before the end of the term. Dumbledore decided he would simply have to find a way to subtly stimy Umbridge’s attempts to stick her nose where it did not belong in the meantime.

“Mum, I’m hungry, that stuff the French call food is horrible,” Ron Weasley complained as he and his mother exited the cells after collecting their things.

“I know dear, but we’re going home now, I will make you something once we reach the Burrow,” Molly assured him. “Good Afternoon Albus.”

“Good afternoon Molly, Ronald, are you ready to go?”

Molly glanced around. “We’re just waiting for Ginevra, I haven’t seen her since we were manhandled by those horrible French men,” She explained pointing her finger at the Auror at the desk. “And they wouldn’t tell me where she was.”

Fudge let out a sigh. “Molly, I regret that Ginevra won’t be returning to England with us. She’s being treated at a mental health facility here in Paris.”

“WHAT?!” Molly screamed. “What are those horrible French pigs doing to my daughter?!”

Fudge stared at Molly evenly. “They are treating her for long term psychological damage, apparently her long-time crush on Harry Potter has turned into an obsession boarding on mania. When Ginevra was taken into custody, she had a psychotic break, and the results are… disturbing.”

“You’ve seen her then, Cornelius?” Dumbledore asked.

Fudge nodded. “Yes, Arthur through Amelia Bones asked me to visit in my official capacity as the Minister. Ginevra has slipped into a fantasy where she believes herself to be Harry Potter’s wife and the mother of his child. Ginevra sees the doctor treating her as Harry Potter and her room as their house. It will be months, perhaps years before they can piece her mind back together, if ever.”

Molly turned to Dumbledore with a pleading expression. “Albus, please, you need to help, my Ginny has a crush on a boy, all she needs is to come home with us. Ginny is simply scared because she’s in a different country and the boy she loves was ripped from her arms. I can take care of her, we can’t let her stay here.”

Dumbledore pinched the bridge of his nose, he wanted to help, for his reasons, but Ginevra was out of reach for right now. Once Harry was back in England, they could work on getting Ginevra released. “Molly, there is not much we can do, once we arrive home, we can discuss our options with Arthur and Cornelius. I’m sure at least she can be moved to St. Mungo’s for treatment.”

Molly nodded. “Very well, we should go then, I don’t want to be in this country any longer.”

As the four were joined by Remus and walked out Ron muttered. “I never wanted to come in the first place…”

Chateau Delacour, Neuilly-sur-Seine, France

29 July 1995

After letting both Fleur and Hermione rest for the remainder of the previous day, Appoline and Tonks gathered them and Emma in Appoline’s office. Appoline handed out copies of the file regarding the woman they believed was Lily Potter. “Her name is Verity Foreman, a mundane former English schoolteacher. She moved here in 1990 and was granted citizenship in 1992.”

“So, this Verity woman is not Magical?” Emma asked.

Tonks and Appoline glanced at each other before answering the question. “There is a notation on the file, marked in ink with a mundane notice-me-not spell. It outlines that when Verity Foreman was examined for the medical section of her citizenship test, it was discovered her magic was bound.”

All three women looked up with Emma throwing a questioning glance at Hermione. “Mum, do you remember what Professor McGonagall told you about what would happen if I decided not to attend Hogwarts?”

Emma frowned and pondered the question. “Something about our memories being altered.”

Hermione nodded. “That’s part of it, but I would also have had my magic bound so I wouldn’t accidentally reveal my status as a witch in the mundane world. Someone did that to Lily… Verity.”

“Did no one ask the English Ministry about this?” Fleur asked.

“A courtesy inquiry was made with the UK Embassy but since Verity’s magic was bound and she met all other qualifications for citizenship no follow up check was ever done,” Appoline replied.

“So, it’s possible this woman is Lily Potter?” Hermione pressed.

“Oui, I would say it’s likely.”

“How do we make sure?” Hermione asked.

“I have called in a favour with one of my colleagues at the Ministre de l'Intérieur, Verity Foreman will be called in to answer some routine questions about her residency and her personal history. Just to fill in the gaps in our records, it seems there was a fire, and her file was one of the ones destroyed… shame about that,” Appoline explained with a grin.

“I assume there is more to it?” Emma asked smirking.

“Oui, while we are asking Verity questions one of my Aurors will scan her magical signature and compare it to what we have on file for Arry. If they match, we can move forward.”

“What’s the next step if her magic does match Harry’s?” Hermione asked.

“We will seek guidance from the ICW medical section on how to remove memory blocks. A common misconception with the Obliviate spell is that it wipes a person’s memories, it does not. It only creates blocks in the brain so those memories cannot be accessed. Once those blocks are removed if Verity is Lily as we suspect she will regain her memories.”

“And wake up in a world where her son is being controlled by someone, she thought she could trust, someone I thought I could trust,” Hermione muttered.

Fleur reached out and took Hermione by the hand. “We will save him cherie, you just need to have faith.”

“I know…” Hermione replied, trying but failing to smile.

“When will this happen?” Emma asked.

“Tomorrow, I sent the letter out yesterday requesting Verity’s presence at the Ministry tomorrow morning. I will be interviewing while one of my Aurors collects the magical signature. Medi-Witch Tonks will be there with a vial of Arry’s blood for immediate comparison.”

Emma grinned. “Efficient.”

“You know me mon amour, I am efficient in all things,” Appoline replied with a grin as Emma’s cheeks turned pink.

“Sex, sex, sex, that’s all you ever think about…” Hermione muttered.

Office of the Bureau de la Justice Magique, Paris, France

30 July 1995

Appoline looked up and smiled as she spotted Verity Foreman entering the room and stood offering the younger woman her hand. “Bonjour Miss Foreman, my name is Appoline Delacour, I am assisting the Ministry with correcting the errors in our files today.”

Verity nodded and shook Appoline’s hand before sitting down. “I’m always happy to help, I was surprised I never saw anything in the papers about a fire.”

“It was small and easily extinguished, but we all want to save face, and since this was an accident everyone agreed to keep it quiet. Once we’ve corrected our records it will not be spoken of again.”

Verity nodded. “I see.”

Appoline smiled and nodded and opened the file. “Then, let’s begin.”

On the other side of a one-way mirror, Tonks and Andi stood watching the interview. Andi let out a breath as tears welled in her eyes. “Mum, what’s wrong?”

“When Lily went into hiding, she was beginning her second year of Healer training, this was when I was teaching so I could spend more time raising you,” Andi added with a smile. “I’d heard about her through Siri so when she joined my potions class, I took a shine to her. A teacher isn’t supposed to have favourites, but Lily was a favourite of mine. We were friends, close enough friends that Lily brought Harry to me when…” Andi paused and shook her head. “A story for another time, I think. Anyway, you doted on him, he was your little brother, and you were upset when he went away.”

Tonks blushed and looked away. “Yeah, well, I guess I did, the memories are hazy but since I’ve spent time hanging around him, they’ve started to come back. I remember his eyes most, they always shone with happiness, it’s the same happiness that he expressed when he mentioned Hermione or Fleur. Harry loves them, despite everything his relatives put him through he still found it in his heart to love and then fucking Dumbledore…”

Andi reached out and patted her daughter on the hand. “I know, and one day we’ll make our displeasure about how Dumbledore treated Harry known to him personally. For right now we have to focus on saving Lily and Harry.”

“You believe Lily Potter is sitting in that interrogation room?” Tonks asked, there wasn’t a tone of disbelief in her voice, just curiosity.

“I do, I didn’t know Lily that long, but I am sure that is her, but we should confirm anyway.”

Andi raised the vial of blood she’d drawn from Harry that morning and cast a complicated spell over it. Andi then repeated the same motions in Verity’s direction and then moved her wand between the vial and the woman. When the vial glowed bright blue, Andi had her answer. “When the vial glows blue it indicates the two-share familial magic, the brighter the glow the closer the connection. I have no doubt that is Lily Potter.”

“Then how did Harry’s magic not react to her presence in Paris but Fleur’s magic did?”

“I’m not sure, this is a guess but perhaps whatever spell Dumbledore cast to bind Lily’s magic didn’t consider a Veela Soul Bond. No one could have predicted what happened under the lake,” Andi explained having been informed of the Soul Bond due to her ongoing search for a way to reverse the effects of Snape’s potion, she’d directed some of her assistants to begin researching Veela Soul Bonds with help from Appoline’s mother. “That might explain why Harry didn’t find his mother before now, but even if he had she wouldn’t have recognised him.”

In the interrogation room, Appoline looked over the notes in the file in front of her. “My notes say you’ve been out of the country for the last month, a trip to the United States?”

“That’s right, it was a book-buying trip to the East Coast of America for my employer, I returned three days ago.”

Tonks glanced at her mother. “That would explain Fleur not picking up on Lily’s magic.”

“It would,” Andi agreed as she scribbled a note and handed it to the Auror in the room with them who walked out and handed the note to Appoline. “Thank you,” She replied turning her attention back to Verity. “We just have a few more questions, you’ve lived in France since nineteen ninety and became a citizen in ninety-two, what prompted you to move from England to France, from the parts of your file that are left you were a successful schoolteacher and yet you now work in a Parisian bookshop.”

Verity stared down at the desk and frowned. “My husband, Alan, died in a hit and run accident in nineteen eighty-nine…”

Tonks turned to her mother. “James?”

“It’s very likely,” Andi agreed.

“…After I buried him, I tried to go back to work and continue as nothing had happened, but there was this void in my life that teaching didn’t fill anymore. So I finished out the school year at my job and made arrangements to move.”

“Why France?”

Verity shrugged. “France is a beautiful country and my husband, and I never had a lot of money, even after the insurance was paid out, I didn’t have enough to move far. I just wanted to get out of England for a while and by the time the money began to run out I’d fallen in love with Paris.”

Appoline smiled. “It does have that effect on people,” Appoline closed the file and began standing up. “Missus Foreman, I apologise but I would like you to remain here for a while longer, I need to consult with some colleagues on another matter, but I still have a few questions for you. I can have someone bring you some tea and lunch while you wait?”

“Will you be very long?” Verity asked.

“A half-hour to forty-five minutes at most,” Appoline replied apologetically.

Verity slumped in her chair a little but nodded. “Ok, I would like this resolved today if possible, I can’t afford to take much time off work.”

“We’ll do our best,” Appoline assured her as she walked out.

Appoline walked out of the room and into the observation room where Tonks and Andi were waiting. “You are certain that is Lily Potter?”

Andi nodded. “The test doesn’t lie, the vial of blood radiated strong familiar magic.”

Appoline crossed her arms. “Then how do we proceed from here, we need to remove the blocks from her mind and recover Lily’s memories…”

“Why don’t we just tell her?” Tonks offered which caused both women to glance at her. “Look, we’re not technically breaking the law by telling a mundane citizen about magic, it’s Lily Potter. I mean we could come up with a complicated scheme to trick her into helping us, but why bother when we can just explain it and prove that magic exists.” (A/N: I feel attacked…)

Appoline opened then closed her mouth finally grinning at the younger woman. “You’re right, of course. Shall we go back inside?”

The two women nodded and walked back to speak to Lily. “That was quick.”

“Yes, Missus Foreman I must apologise, I’ve called you here today on a false premise,” Appoline explained.

“How so?” Verity asked guardedly.

“There was no accident with our files, and while I do work for the Interior Ministry, I don’t work in the Migration department. I am Director Appoline Delacour of the Bureau de la Justice Magique.”

Verity blinked several times translating the words in her head. “The Bureau of Magical Justice, that’s not real, is this a prank, are you filming this?”

Appoline shook her head. “Non, my department is very real, magic is real and the four of us have been blessed by magic.”

Verity looked around the room incuriously. “I don’t see anyone else, is this fourth person invisible?”

“Non, the fourth person is you.”

Verity laughed. “I am not magical, because magic doesn’t exist, watch!” Verity waved her fingers at them. “Abra Kadabra!”

The three women across the table from Verity flinched as she said the words that were the basis for the Avada Kedavra spell, and she withdrew her hand. “What?”

“That incantation is very similar to a dark spell commonly known as the Killing Curse, I would advise not to do that again,” Appoline explained grimly.

“Fine, but this is silly, magic doesn’t exist,” Verity replied dismissively.

“I think a demonstration is in order,” Appoline replied standing up. “Missus Foreman, what is your favourite breed of dog?”

Verity blinked. “Um, Staffordshire Bull Terrier.”

Appoline nodded and smiled waving her wand over the chair and transforming it into said dog. Tonks had to bite back a squeal as the dog walked up and began sniffing her as she bent down to pat it. “You’re so sweet, yes you are!”

Andi rolled her eyes as she conjured a leash and led the dog around the table to Verity. “I assure you, Missus Foreman, magic is quite real.”

“B-but… this is a trick, you used mirrors or something like that man, David Copperfield!” Verity argued as she patted the dog absently.

“The Dickens book?” Andi asked sounding confused.

Appoline laughed. “It’s also the stage name of an American magician, he uses Apparition to move from one place to another and has made a lot of money doing so.”

“How does he get away with that, it’s a violation of the Statute of Secrecy?” Tonks asked.

“The ICW has reminded Mister Copperfield of that several times, but there aren’t enough Obliviation squads in the world to make people forget about him and removing him from the spotlight now would simply cause more questions than we would like to answer. So, Mister Copperfield is allowed to continue his work, begrudgingly.” Appoline explained as she turned to Verity. “I can assure you this is real, if you’d like to come to this side of the desk, I can prove it. Please bring the dog with you.”

Verity took the lead from Andi and walked it around the table twice finally returning to the spot where the chair had been. Appoline banished the leash and returned the chair to its original state. After Verity picked up the chair and examined the area where the dog had been, she returned to her side of the table and sat down. “Ok, say I believe you, why are you telling me this, I’m don’t have magic.”

“You do, though someone bound your magic and made you forget about your former life,” Appoline explained.

“They made me forget, why?”

“At the moment we can’t say, we think we know who was responsible, but you may be able to tell us more once we’ve reversed the blocks on your memory.”

“Stop, stop…” Verity begged. “Just, please explain this slowly, you’re going too fast.”

Appoline nodded. “I’m sorry, let me start again. We believe you are Lily Potter, husband of James mother of Harry, both English wizards.”

“Why do you think that?”

Appoline glanced at Andi who nodded and held up the glass tube. “This is a vial of Harry Potter’s blood, I can cast a spell on it and you and if it glows blue it will prove that the two of you share familial magic. The brighter the glow the closer familial bond you share.”

Verity nodded and Andi handed the vial to her. “Just to prove this is not a trick,” Andi explained waving her wand over the vial and Verity. Once again, the vial glowed bright blue, the light so intense the four women had to look away. “So, it's true, I’m related to this, Harry Potter?”

Andi nodded and pulled out a picture she’d taken from Harry’s photo album. The photo was of Lily, James, and Harry as a baby. Tears welled in Verity’s eyes as she looked at it. “It’s Alan… but we… I don’t remember this, we never… I tried and tried to have a baby, but nothing worked. Before Alan… James, before James died, we were growing distant, I wanted to adopt but Al… James was against it. Even if James hadn’t died, we would have divorced eventually our marriage was breaking down, but I still loved him. How old is this photo?”

“It was taken in nineteen eighty, your son is fourteen, he’ll turn fifteen in a few days.”

“Can I see him?” Verity asked.

“Missus Fore…” Appoline began but Verity cut in. “Potter, my name is Lily Potter.”

The three women smiled back at her. “Missus Potter, I think that is something best discussed once you’ve regained your memories, the situation with Harry is… complicated.”

“How?” Lily pressed.

“As I said the situation is complicated, more complicated than I have time to explain right now. If you’re willing to return tomorrow I can arrange for someone to come here tonight who should be able to remove the blocks on your memory. When that is done, I will explain everything.”

Lily thought for a moment and then nodded. “Ok, I… it’s so difficult to take in, for the longest time I’ve felt like something in my life was missing. Even before James died, we both felt a void where Harry should have been. I didn’t know what it was at the time, but I do now. I’m willing to work with you, I hope you’ll repay that trust by helping me.”

Appoline nodded. “That is our intention.”

Lily picked up her bag. “What time should I be here tomorrow?”

“I will have a car take you home and pick you up at eight-thirty tomorrow morning.”

“Thank you,” Lily replied when she saw that Appoline’s eye brokered no argument.

As Tonks escorted Lily out of the building Andi turned to Appoline. “What’s the plan now?”

“I need to return to my office and call in a favour,” Appoline explained.

“From whom?”

Appoline smiled. “You’ll see.”

International Confederation of Wizards Headquarters, The Hague, Netherlands

Holding Cells

Snape glanced up from his position on the bed as someone knocked on the door to his cell, he scowled as he knew it was time to be served the swill that passed for dinner in this place. Snape rose from the bed and stood against the rear wall. The door opened and two guards walked in, one kept Snape covered while the other placed the tray on the bed. The two men glared at Snape as they walked out. Snape sighed but resigned himself to the fact that in two days all his secrets would be spilled for the world to hear. Snape was at least reassured that all food served to prisoners was checked for poisons before it was served. Although as Snape stared down at his meagre meal he wondered if the food itself could be considered a poison was given how poor the quality was.

As soon as Snape took the first bite, he realised it was too late, he was an expert potioneer after all. Someone had mixed a potion tainted with Basilisk Venom into his food. Snape tried to stand but the second part of the concoction activated, and he felt the paralytic take effect as he slumped to the floor. As Snape stared at the door and the burning sensation of his body rotting because of the venom his conversation with Dumbledore came floating back.

"You don't seem bothered by the revelations of Lucius's trial. Aren't you worried I will return to the Dark Lord's side?"

"I have faith that you will keep your word, Severus, lest young Harry finds out who betrayed his parents. And if you were to stray, I would simply turn you into the Aurors."

"You would risk me spilling your secrets?"

Dumbledore graced Snape with a kind smile that didn't reach his eyes. "It would not get that far."

Snape had thought himself indispensable to Dumbledore, he was Dumbledore’s man on the inside with Voldemort. But as Snape lay dying it dawned on him, everyone was expendable in the pursuit of Dumbledore’s Greater Good.

Chateau Delacour, Neuilly-sur-Seine, France

31 July 1995

Fleur glanced up from the ritual text she’d been studying to find Hermione staring out of a window of the Chateau with a wistful look on her face. Fleur closed the book and crossed the room, sitting down opposite Hermione. “What’s wrong, mon amour?”

Hermione blushed a little and shook her head. “It’s nothing…”

“It must be something since Harry was taken away you’ve been singularly focused on helping get him back, but today you’ve let your mind wander. Something beyond the obvious is bothering you.”

Hermione sighed, putting her book down on the table. “It’s Harry’s birthday.”

Fleur looked away. “I was aware, but I didn’t want to bring it up, I didn’t want to upset you.”

Hermione smiled and took Fleur’s hand in her own. “Thank you, but…”

“It was going to upset you regardless?” Fleur asked and Hermione nodded. “We should be here, together, celebrating as a family. But we both know what would happen if we tried to go see him.”

“Oui… it would not be pleasant.”

Hermione huffed angrily. “I will find out why Dumbledore is so damn obsessed with Harry, I swear it.”

Fleur grinned back at Hermione. “I believe you, and I will be there by your side when you do.”

Hermione smiled again, playing with Fleur’s fingers. “When we get Harry back, I want to finalise the Soul Bond.”

“Really?”

Hermione nodded. “Even without everything that’s happened, I think I would have arrived at this conclusion anyway. I know logically it’s the right thing to do, but my heart needed to catch up. I never envisioned having to share Harry with someone… I never envisioned Harry would see me that way in the first place.”

Fleur sighed and brushed some hair out of Hermione’s face. “I think, mon amour, something we will work on, the three of us will work on if your self-confidence. You do not see yourself as Arry and I see you, you only see what your bullies made you believe.”

“And what do you see?”

“I see a beautiful girl who is maturing into a gorgeous woman, I see a smart, driven woman who I will be proud to call my bond-sister once we banish this thing with Arry’s face. I do not see a bucktoothed bookworm who hides in libraries and escapes into the pages of Jane Austin. I see someone who revels in works of literature and values and devours knowledge. That is the Hermione Arry and I see, our Hermione, the woman we love.”

Hermione gaped in awe at the passion Fleur had put into her speech as she lit up bright red from a blush. “T-thank you, Fleur…” She replied in a small voice.

Fleur leaned in and gave Hermione a peck on the cheek. “You’re welcome, now, shall we get back to work?” Fleur asked holding up a book for Hermione.

“Oui.”

Office of the Bureau de la Justice Magique, Paris, France

“Good morning Missus Potter,” Appoline said with a smile as Lily was escorted into the interrogation room by Tonks.

“Good morning Madame Delacour.”

“How are you feeling?”

Lily sighed and shrugged. “Nervous, I guess, as I said I believe you, but I still have some doubts that this is real... And I don’t know how I’ll feel once I get my memories back, angry I suppose. I missed out on so many years of seeing my son grow up and if we hadn’t had our memories taken away…”

Appoline reached out and gave Lily a small squeeze on the shoulder. “You don’t need to say it, the lists of crimes the man who took away your memories has committed continues to grow.”

“You know who did this to me?” Lily asked.

“Nothing I can prove but given the pattern of behaviour I heavily suspect who it is, but that will have to wait until your memories are restored. If you could wait here for a few more minutes we are still anticipating the arrival of the person who will help us.”

Lily raised an eyebrow. “This isn’t a medical procedure?”

“No, we will explain soon.”

As Appoline walked out into the corridor she found Tonks and Andi waiting, reading that day’s copy of the International Wizarding Times. The top headline was accompanied by a picture of Severus Snape being led from the house Dumbledore had held Harry in cuffs.

Severus Snape Commits Suicide in ICW Custody!

The article went onto detail how Snape had smuggled a vial of Basilisk venom in a secret pocket in his robes. It also quoted new ICW Supreme Mugwump Babajide Akingbade who promised a full investigation into Snape’s death. Tonks frowned. “Swallowing a vial of Basilisk venom is not how I’d chose to go out…”

Andi glanced at her daughter. “I’d hope you’d never consider something as drastic as suicide in the first place…”

Tonks shrugged. “If Voldemort took over and there was no hope of escape…”

“Voldemort is dead, he can’t hurt us anymore,” Andi assured her.

“Voldemort may be dead, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be another just like him in a few years,” Tonks countered.

“That’s why we have to put our faith in people like you, Arry, Fleur, Gabrielle, Hermione and their friends. You can change things, so we never see the likes of Voldemort again,” Appoline commented, entering the conversation.

“If Dumbledore doesn’t stick his oversized nose in…” Tonks muttered.

“We will deal with Dumbledore, in due course, for right now we need to focus on helping Lily and Arry.”

“Do you think Snape committed suicide?” Andi asked to which Appoline shook her head. “I very much doubt it, even if he could have moved the vial from his robes to his prison attire someone would have found it before he had a chance to use it. This was murder.”

Tonks sighed again shaking her head. “Dumbledore…”

“That is our belief too,” Another voice replied as all three women drew their wands and aimed it at the new person in the conversation.

“Bloody Merlin, Nick, don’t… wait, NICK!” Tonks exclaimed stowing her wand and running over to embrace her friend.

“It’s been a while,” He replied returning the hug.

“A while, it’s been years! Oh, sure I get the occasional letter but, where have you been, why are you here?!” Tonks demanded.

“Are you the Unspeakable I requested?” Appoline asked, biting back her amusement.

“Yes, Ma’am, Nicholas Carlstrom, ICW Unspeakable representing the Obliviation unit,” Nick replied with a smile, handing over his credentials which Appoline quickly verified with a wave of her wand.

“You’re an Unspeakable, since when?” Tonks asked.

“Since I left Hogwarts at the end of Sixth Year. I was recruited over that summer, it’s part of the reason I didn’t come back.”

“The rest being your brother and Dumbledore?” Tonks guessed to which Nick nodded.

“We can talk about that later, right now we should talk about what I’m here to do. You were a little vague in your call to my boss last night, Madame Delacour.”

“Oui, with good reason, follow me,” Appoline replied leading Carlstrom, Tonks, and Andi into the observation room. Nick blinked and glanced at Appoline, Tonks, and Andi in succession. “Is this a joke?”

“Why would you ask that?” Appoline enquired, curious if the young man who had gone to Hogwarts with Tonks knew who he was looking at through the glass.

“Well, unless you’ve charmed the glass in some way, I’m not familiar with, that’s Lily Potter sitting in that interrogation room. I mean she’s older than the pictures featured in the Prophet and the IWT but that’s her.”

“Oui, it is.”

Nick looked at Lily and then back to Appoline. “She looks good for a dead woman.”

“That she does, we believe Lily and James Potter were obliviated and given fake lives and identities by Albus Dumbledore.”

Nick frowned and glanced at Lily again. “That’s a serious accusation Madame Delacour.”

“Do you think I am wrong?” Appoline replied.

“No, I am willing to believe Albus Dumbledore would do something like this to fit in with whatever plans he has. Control and manipulation are words Dumbledore is intimately familiar with.”

“You sound as if you’ve had run-ins with Dumbledore before?” Appoline enquired.

“Yes Ma’am, but I’d rather not go into it right now, maybe later, over a glass of wine?” Nick replied with a grin.

Tonks moved in behind Nick and gave him a firm slap upside the head. “Can it lover boy!”

“Ow! Tonks!”

Appoline covered her face, biting back a laugh, she was old enough to be his mother, but it was always flattering to be hit on by a younger man. Regardless of being a Veela she still felt the weight of years having raised two daughters on her own and running the Bureau. Appoline hoped Fleur and Gabrielle would not suffer the fate of losing the man they loved as early as she had. “I think we should focus on work, Mister Carlstrom.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” Nick replied while glaring at Tonks, who stuck her tongue out at him.

As Carlstrom and Appoline walked out of the room Andi turned to her daughter. “Is he up to this?”

Tonks smiled and nodded. “Yeah, he’s a natural legimens, he might be as good at it as Dumbledore, he was good when he was at Hogwarts and that was almost six years ago.”

The door of the interrogation room opened and Carlstrom and Appoline stepped inside. “Missus Potter, this man is here to help you lift the blocks on your memory.”

Carlstrom stuck out his hand as Lily stood up. “Missus Potter, my name is Nicholas Carlstrom, I am here on behalf of the International Confederation of Wizards’ Unspeakable division.”

“What is that?”

Nick glanced at Appoline and looked back at Lily as he sat down. “The ICW is like the United Nations, they supervise the implementation of the Statute of Secrecy and mediate international disputes. The Unspeakables are a department within the ICW that investigates the weird and studies magic. I’m a bit of a jack of all trades, I go where I’m needed whether its to hunt Dark Wizards or collect and transport artifacts or like today use my power of Legimency.”

“What is Legimency?”

“Legimency allows someone to read someone else’s mind, with their permission of course.”

“Can you do it without someone’s permission?”

“Yes, but if I did, I would be breaking the law. Even passively reading someone else’s thoughts is illegal if you don’t have permission.”

“Legimens must register with the Ministry in France, that is not the case everywhere though,” Appoline added.

“Is there any way to stop someone reading your mind?”

“Yes, the art is called Occulmancy, but once you have your memories back you shouldn’t have to worry about that, it's my understanding you were a skilled Occulmens when you were younger,” Nick replied with a smile. “Now, are you ready Missus Potter?”

“Yes, I think so, what should I do?”

“Just look into my eyes and don’t look away. I’m going to wave my wand and cast a Spell, depending on how deep I have to go this may hurt. If it gets too much, please tell me and I’ll pull back.”

Lily nodded and focused on Nick’s grey eyes. “Ok, I’m ready.”

Nick nodded and waved his wand. “Legimens.”

Nick let out a breath and dove into Lily’s mind, he ignored the recent memories and pushed deeper trying to find some stray memory of Lily Potter he could latch onto. Once Nick did, he could follow the path of that memory back to the source, the bundle of memories trapped behind the blocks of Obliviation. What felt like minutes but were probably more like seconds passed as Nick went deeper and deeper into Lily’s mind, he could feel something wrong but shook it off in favour of exploring, he wanted to be sure he couldn’t find a memory before he returned. It was important that he succeed, he’d read the reports on what had been done Harry Potter and his bond with Granger and Delacour. Harry Potter deserved a little bit of happiness and Nick was determined to help him get it.

Nick stopped when he arrived at what his mindscape represented as a wall, he reached out and rested his hand against it. Nick knew Lily Potter’s real memories were behind this wall, he just had to break through to the other side. Nick focused his magic and began pushing against the wall, but as he summoned more magic to assist him, he felt something pushing back against him. Suddenly something lashed out and wrapped around Nick’s neck and began to squeeze. Nick fell backwards grasping at his neck and gasping for breath, he could feel himself being pulled in as he clawed the floor to get away from the thing strangling him.

In the real-world Nick’s body began shaking as he started making choking sounds. Seconds later Nick’s eyes rolled back in his head and he toppled over out of the chair, convulsing.

“Shit!” Appoline exclaimed as she hit the room’s alarm button and stunned the fallen Unspeakable to stop him convulsing and biting his tongue off. Seconds later Tonks and Andi were in the room and Andi dropped to her knees rolling Nick onto his back as Lily back away, shocked and scared. “W-what happened?!”

“I don’t know, please stay calm Missus Potter, we’re going to figure this out. Andi, is he ok?”

Andi was checking his pulse and pupils as she spoke. “His heartbeat is worryingly rapid, and his pupils are dilated, other than that I can’t see anything wrong. I recommend we take him to Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital for observation. Once we’re sure Nick is out of danger, we can ask him what happened?”

Appoline nodded and directed one of her Aurors to inform the hospital that they would be bringing in a patient, then she turned back to Lily Potter. “My apologies, Missus Potter, we will have to suspend today’s activities for now. I hope you can be patient with us.”

Lily nodded, her eyes still on Carlstrom. “I just hope I haven’t done anything to hurt him.”

Appoline glanced over at Carlstrom who was being loaded onto a stretcher. “It’s too early to say, but I wouldn’t think so.”

Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital, Paris, France

Magical Treatment Wing

Harry sat in his bed glaring at the guard opposite and then back down to the copy of the International Wizarding Times he’d been given earlier in the day. Harry was both sad and happy that Severus Snape was dead, he was sad that the man had died but happy Snape had committed suicide rather than reveal the Headmaster’s secrets. This then turned to thoughts of who the Hogwarts Potions Professor would be for the coming term, Harry hoped he would be released in time to board the train on September first but he wasn’t worried, he knew Professor Dumbledore would save him eventually.

Harry’s only other regret from the day was that he wasn’t able to celebrate his birthday with Ginny and the rest of the Weasley’s. Harry felt happy and loved with them but now they were an ocean away and he was alone again on his birthday. Harry was surprised that Granger and the Veela hadn’t made an appearance to try and ingratiate themselves with him by bringing him gifts and trying to celebrate his birthday. Harry surmised Granger wasn’t quite that stupid.

1 August 1995

Nick groaned as he raised his hand to his face, but it was quickly moved away as someone shined a bright light in his eyes. “How are you feeling, Mister Carlstrom?”

“Like I got hit by a bludger, is Missus Potter ok?”

Appoline appeared in his field of view. “She appears to be ok, I sent Auror Tonks to check in on her an hour ago. Tonks rang and said Missus Potter has suffered no ill effects from the aborted Legimency probe.”

“Good…”

“Can you tell me what happened?”

Nick sat up in bed. “I’m not quite sure myself, it was going fine until I hit a wall in her mind. I’m used to seeing memories locked up, but I’ve never encountered something like this before. This is beyond Obliviation, it was as if whatever was protecting Lily Potter’s memories was alive…”

To Be Continued…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to continue this chapter but its creeping towards 10,000 words and I have more than 10,000 words of the story to tell in this chapter, so I’ll save that for the next chapter. This came along a lot easier than the last chapter after I decided to go with a straightforward approach to helping Lily it flowed well.
> 
> The Author note in the middle of the chapter is a joke, I’m a little bit serious because I came up with a variety of plans to deal with getting Lily on board to help herself, but in the end, I decided the straight forward approach was best. If only my plans for later in the story were coming together as well… I’ll figure it out.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Harry Potter Franchise or its characters. All characters used are the property of their respective owners.
> 
> This story is rated M for violence, language, & sexual themes.
> 
> A Special Thanks to my Alpha/Beta on this story kgfinkel.
> 
> This story is a Horcrux free zone.
> 
> If you don’t like the story, don’t read it.
> 
> Note: I am drawing inspiration for the function of the potion from RobSt’s story Banking on Her. I claim no rights to the idea.
> 
> Note 2: Nick Carlstrom is my Player Character from Harry Potter: A Hogwarts Mystery.
> 
> Warning: Manipulative Dumbledore & Weasley Bashing (Ron, Molly, & Ginny.)

Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft

Halloween, 1981

Albus Dumbledore sighed, sitting in front of him was a three-page letter written by Gilderoy Lockhart detailing all the reasons he should have been named as Head Boy over the Ravenclaw chosen for the position. Dumbledore massaged the bridge of his nose as he tossed the letter into the hearth and allowed it to burn away. Dumbledore genuinely worried about the boy and whether he would ever make something of himself. Despite being quite intelligent Lockhart never seemed to apply himself in class according to Minerva. It made Dumbledore wonder if the Sorting Hat had made an error with Lockhart’s placement, but he was distracted from this train of thought moments later by a small bell ringing on a nearby shelf. Dumbledore stood and stilled the bell and smiled.

The fidelius charm had failed on the Potter residence at Godric’s Hollow which meant both Lily and James were dead, and something had happened to Tom. That is what Dumbledore presumed, of course, he had no way of being certain of the outcome of the battle between the baby Potter and the self-styled Dark Lord, but with Riddle’s lust for power, fear of death and the Prophecy, Dumbledore was sure this wouldn’t be the end of him.

Dumbledore summoned his travelling cloak and activated the portkey he’d removed from a drawer on his desk and seconds later landed in the lane where the Potter cottage was located. Dumbledore began walking but paused when he heard voices ahead of him. Casting a disillusionment spell on himself, Dumbledore crept forward and stopped at the gate, his eyes widening in amazement.

“James!” Lily Potter cried out as she burst into what was left of the living room, dodging bits of the shattered wall as she ran towards her husband.

“Lily, are you ok, what about Harry?” James asked worriedly as he pulled himself to his feet.

“Harry is fine, I’m more worried about you, you’re bleeding!” Lily replied producing her wand and waving it over James’s wounds.

James chuckled and kissed Lily on the forehead as she closed his wounds. “The other guy got it worse…”

Lily rolled her eyes, but a smile tugged at her lips. “You’re impossible, Merlin help any girl Harry meets if he grows up to be like you.”

“Your brains and my good looks? How could he go wrong?”

Lily gave James a small shove but then pulled him against her, burying her face in his chest. “You almost died… I can’t lose you, you and Harry, you’re my world.”

“And you, Lily flower, you and Harry are my world. I will always step in front of danger to protect you both.” James muttered into Lily’s flame-red hair.

“We’re supposed to be partners, remember?” Lily reminded him.

“I know, but when that snake faced bastard ripped the front wall off our house… I couldn’t let him get to you and Harry.”

Lily made a sound in her throat that indicated she disagreed with him but would let the matter rest, for now. Lily turned around and leaned down to poke at the remains of Voldemort’s robes with her wand. “Where is the body?”

James walked over and nudged the robes with his foot. “I’m not sure… I fired a cutting curse at his neck and his body disintegrated, it was like the shield he raised wasn’t even there. Something came out of the robes, a wraith or spirit or whatever, maybe Dumbledore will know. All I know is Voldemort was a lot weaker than advertised.”

Lily stood with a dark expression on her face. “Peter betrayed us…”

“I know… As soon as you and Harry are somewhere safe, I plan to get Sirius and go have a chat,” James confirmed, when Lily threw him a look he raised his hands placatingly. “As soon as Harry is somewhere safe, we will go have a chat with Peter.”

“That’s what I thought you said,” Lily replied with a grin.

A second later the two Potter’s collapsed on the floor, stunned and Dumbledore cancelled the spell on himself. With the killing curse on his lips, Dumbledore aimed his wand at James but stopped. Dumbledore shook himself and lowered his wand, he wasn’t a murderer, he worked in service of the light and the Greater Good. James and Lily needed to be sent away but Dumbledore wouldn’t kill them. Dumbledore knew he needed a different way to make Harry’s parents disappear and simple Obliviation wouldn’t be enough and he needed more time.

Dumbledore levitated Lily and James and moved them into the garden where he disillusioned the bodies and then cast a transfiguration spell on two of the bigger pieces of rubble. The bodies would pass cursory inspection by the muggle’s authorities. Dumbledore then sent a messenger Patronus off to summon Hagrid before arranging the scene to suit his needs. Dumbledore left the body of James Potter downstairs while moving Lily and Voldemort’s robes upstairs into Harry’s bedroom. Dumbledore sighed as he glanced at the toddler Potter knowing he would have to do some of the work Tom had failed to do as he cast a low powered cutting curse at the head of the Potter boy, giving him a lightening shaped wound on his head.

As Dumbledore banished part of the second-floor wall he heard someone land in the street with a thud and the front gate fly open. Dumbledore disillusioned himself once again and waited in the shadows as Peter Pettigrew ran up the stairs and into the nursery to collect his master’s wand before transforming into a rat and running away. Moments later Severus Snape appeared and took time to cry over his fallen crush before apparating away as Sirius Black arrived on his flying motorcycle. Around this time Hagrid finally entered with Dumbledore’s orders to take the baby Potter. Dumbledore watched them argue and knowing Black wouldn’t be moved sent a mild Confundus charm at him. Dumbledore couldn’t risk young Harry falling in with Black, even if he proclaimed to be for the light, Dumbledore knew better. Once Harry was ready to return to Magical Britain he would only associate with Wizards and Witches that met Dumbledore’s standards.

Once Hagrid, Harry, and Sirius were gone Dumbledore quickly gathered Lily and James and departed himself via Portkey. The lab Dumbledore moved them two was dusty from disuse, but it would serve his purpose. After placing the two Potters on the table in the centre of the room Dumbledore pulled a piece of parchment towards him and began making plans on how to keep them out of the way permanently.

Dumbledore knew the prophecy had yet to be fulfilled, by attacking the Potter’s Tom had marked Harry as his equal, even if he hadn’t physically done so. The boy would need proper guidance when the time came to reach his destiny. Once that was taken care of Dumbledore could banish Tom at his leisure and the Wizarding World would once again hail its saviour, Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore.

Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital, Paris, France

Magical Treatment Wing

1 August 1995

As Andromeda left the room to consult on how to treat Lily, Tonks approached the bed with a small bag “You gave me a big fright…”

Nick looked away sheepishly, he’d never been able to deal with Tonks when she gave him that look. The look that said Nick had scared her half to death and he should feel bad about it. “Sorry, usually when I dive into someone’s mind it goes a bit smoother than that.”

“Have you done it often?”

“Not often, but enough to know I should have pulled back when I sensed something wrong. But my arrogance got the best of me, not for the first time…” Nick replied bitterly.

Tonks placed the bag on Nick’s lap. “After we brought you in the nurses took some of your personal effects away so they could treat you. I put them in a bag so they wouldn’t get lost.”

Nick smiled at Tonks and retrieved his wand and gun, which had Tonks raising an eyebrow. “Why do you have a gun?”

“Field agents representing the ICW branch of the Unspeakables are credentialed members of Interpol. If I find a mundane criminal among the filth, I sometimes must wade through I can turn them over to the relevant authorities. As such, I can’t always arm myself with a wand and in the places, I go being unarmed would be… problematic.”

“Have you ever used it?”

“Yes,” Nick replied curtly.

Tonks nodded, sensing Nick was unwilling to elaborate. “Well, I guess since Mum has given you the all-clear, you’ll be leaving?”

“You want me gone that badly?” Nick asked teasingly.

“No…” Tonks replied, a little more sharply than she would have liked as her face and hair turned red rather than pink. “I mean, I wouldn’t mind if you stuck around. I’ve missed you…”

Nick reached out and scooped up Tonks’s hand, running his thumb over her knuckles. “I’ve missed you too.”

Tonks brown eyes flickered to Nick’s grey. “I figured you’d always be hung up on Penny…”

Nick chuckled. “That relationship flamed out a long time ago, Penny was at Hogwarts and I couldn’t tell her where I was in case Dumbledore peeked. Besides, she’s happily married to Skye Parkin, at least she was the last I heard.”

“Penny is happy, that doesn’t mean she doesn’t miss you or that you’ve gotten over it,” Tonks pointed out.

“I got over it ages ago, the dull ache in my heart hasn’t gone away but I had to move on. I couldn’t go back after what happened with my brother. Jacob threw himself in front of Rakepick’s AK for me…”

“Only because you threw yourself in front of Snyde first…” Tonks replied bitterly as her hair faded to a mousy brown.

Nick shrugged. “I couldn’t let her die, Tonks, she was a bitch to me for most of our time at Hogwarts, but we were still friends for a while. I don’t think Merula ever forgave me for what happened to Jacob.”

“Have you ever forgiven yourself?” Tonks asked quietly.

“No,” Nick admitted looking away.

Tonks let go of Nick’s hand and stepped back to let him up off the bed. Once he was standing Tonks grabbed his hand and pulled him towards the door. “Come on, time to cheer you up.”

Nick raised an eyebrow. “Where are we going?”

“Lunch, and then wherever you want.”

Nick grinned. “What if what I want is to go back to your room?”

Tonks rolled her eyes and blushed at the same time. “Control yourself, or you’ll get a spanking.”

“Is that a promise?”

“You wish…”

In the Mundane section of the hospital, Andromeda and one of her Mundane colleagues were watching as Lily Potter was moved into the MRI machine. Andi pressed the button on the microphone and spoke. “Ok Lily, we’ll be starting the machine in a second, it’s going to be loud but don’t panic, it’ll be over in a few minutes.”

“Ok,” Lily replied hesitantly.

“What do you expect to find, Doctor Tonks?” Andi’s colleague asked.

“An answer to whatever the hell Dumbledore did to Lily’s memories…” Andi replied, the doctor nodded, while not being a Wizard himself his brother had gone to Beauxbaton so when he’d finished medical school, he was approached to be a go-between for the magical and mundane sides of the hospital. The doctor engaged the scanner and the machine thumped to life, after a few seconds a real-time image of Lily Potter’s skull appeared on the monitor. It was only moments later when Andi squeezed the doctor’s shoulder and pressed the button to end the scan. “We’re not finished.”

“We are though, look,” Andi replied rolling back the images a few frames and pointing to something at the base of Lily’s brain stem.

“What the hell is that?” The doctor asked glancing back at Andi.

“I don’t know, but I would put Galleons on it being the thing that tried to strangle our Unspeakable, at least whatever manifested in Lily’s mind.”

The doctor shook his head as he sent the image to print. “You’re all crazy…”

“That’s not the first time I’ve heard that,” Andi replied as she collected the printout and entered the MRI room to talk to Lily. “Did you find anything?”

“Yes, but we shouldn’t talk about it here. Let’s go meet with Appoline and we’ll sit down and discuss the next step.”

Godric’s Hollow

January 1982

Dumbledore hummed to himself as he put the finishing touches to the equation, he’d devised and moved over the cauldron where a batch of liquid metal was bubbling away. As Dumbledore cast several different and difficult incantations with his wand the metal began rapidly shifting colours until he stopped, and the metal became a deep golden hue. Pleased with his work Dumbledore collected two slivers of metal and walked over to the table where Lily and James lay unconscious. In the two months, he’d had them as guests in his lab the only time Dumbledore let them awaken was to eat, bathe, and use the facilities and only under Imperious. Both Potter’s were powerful in their own right and together they would be a handful even for a wizard of Dumbledore’s stature. Dumbledore couldn’t let them escape and remove Harry from his current accommodation, they would file charges and he could find himself locked in Azkaban. The Potter’s would never understand that Harry had a prophecy to fulfil and an even greater purpose beyond that. Tom thought he knew the secret to immortality, but Dumbledore had discovered a better way decades earlier, not that anyone ever needed to know that.

Dumbledore lifted the sliver of metal out of the glass container and lowered it to Lily’s ear, the metal wriggled around but quickly crawled inside. Dumbledore knew from there it would bury its way through the base of her skull and wrap itself around her brain stem. Once the process was complete with James, he waited an hour and then revived them. “Good afternoon, what are your names?”

“Alan/Verity Foreman.” The two replied in tandem.

“Do you have any children?”

“No.”

“Have you ever seen magic?”

“No.”

Dumbledore chuckled as he created a portkey and handed the rope to James and Lily. “Goodbye my friends, I’m sorry it came to this, but the fate of the world is at stake and I cannot have you both interfering.”

With one last tap of his wand, the two were gone, sent to an apartment Dumbledore had bought with some money from the Potter vault that he now controlled through his Guardianship of Harry. Verity woke up an hour later and dropped the rope she’d found in bed with them in the bin and started preparing breakfast for herself and her husband.

Bureau de la Justice Magique, Paris, France

Andromeda, Apolline, and Lily were sat in Apolline’s office staring at the MRI image on the desk in front of them. Lily frowned and gingerly plucked the paper off the desk and glared at it. “This thing is in my head preventing me from remembering my real life?”

“That’s my theory, when our Unspeakable mentioned a wall in your mind I wondered if your memories might be affected by a potion instead of simple Obliviation. When your blood and hair tests came back negative, I concluded that the only way left was an internal examination.”

“So, what’s the plan now, can we simply cut it out of me?” Lily asked.

“I hope so, but given Dumbledore put safeguards in to stop a Legilimens accessing your memories I fear he may have put in extra precautions to stop someone cutting it out of you.”

Apolline leaned back in her chair and raised her hand to her chin. “Maybe, but this is Albus Dumbledore, as much of an expert in the Magical world as he is. I doubt he could name one thing about the modern mundane world. I would be surprised if he thought anyone would find the thing inside Lily’s head, let alone cut it out.”

“We should be prepared for anything though,” Andromeda added cautiously.

“I agree,” Apolline replied with a smile.

“Then shall we get started?” Lily asked.

The two women nodded and left for the hospital.

Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital, Paris, France

Magical Treatment Wing

Harry glared at the Auror at the end of his bed as he pulled at the restraints around his wrists. “I demand to be released! It’s illegal for you to hold me like this!”

The Auror remained silent as his boss entered the room. Harry turned his glare from his guard to Apolline Delacour. “What do you want?”

“I came to check on you Mister Potter, only to hear you hurling abuse at my Auror. I suppose its slightly better than hurling bedpans at them. But only just.” Apolline commented, earning a small smile from Harry’s guard.

“I demand to be released!”

“I heard you. Unfortunately I cannot comply, you are being held, under guard for attacking my Auror. The investigation is ongoing and as long as I consider you a threat to my country you will remain restrained and in this bed.”

“There is nothing wrong with me! Your daughter is the one who is sick!”

“How so?”

“That girl, that Veela¸ got this notion into her head that we’re soul bound and we’re supposed to be together and I love her. I fucking HATE her! The Veela and Granger! I hate them both! They’re keeping me away from Ginny! I love Ginny! GINNY! GINNY! GIN…” Harry stopped when he realised no sound was coming out of his mouth, he returned his glare to Apolline and began shouting again despite no sound coming out of his mouth.

Apolline shook her head and walked out of the room where Andi was waiting and frowning. “I’m glad Hermione and Fleur weren’t here for that.”

“As am I, I hope my daughter and Hermione find an answer soon. I can’t keep him detained indefinitely.”

“Lily is checked in; the surgery will happen tomorrow morning.”

2 August 1995

The doctor who had helped out Andi the previous day stood beside her as they both scrubbed up for surgery. “How long has it been since you performed surgery?”

Andi cocked her head to the side in consideration. “About ten months, I renew my credentials at Royal Berkshire every year so I can continue to practice in the mundane world. I’m probably the only healer at St. Mungo’s who has degrees in both the mundane and magical world.”

Andi’s colleague simply shook his head as they entered the operating room. Lily was laid out on the bed as the nurses made final preparations. The doctor took control of the endoscope and moved it into position. A few minutes later they had cleared the final barrier and had arrived at the brain stem, the doctor glanced back at Andi who was watching his progress on a monitor. “Do you see what I see?”

“The gold band around Lily’s brain stem, yes I do,” Andi replied as the doctor moved forward with the endoscope and activated the scalpel attached to the device that had been covered until this point. As soon as the blade touched the band Lily’s hand reached out for the doctor but the restraints on her neck, wrists and ankles stopped her from reaching her target or moving more than a few millimetres from her starting point. The doctor controlling the endoscope let out a breath he’d been holding. “It seems Dumbledore did make some preparations in case this happened…”

“Thankfully, so did we,” Andi added.

Very carefully the doctor made an incision into the gold band wrapped around Lily’s brain stem and the band almost instantly came loose. Another tube was moved forward to suck out the band and the endoscope was withdrawn.

Andi moved over to the tube containing the gold sliver that had been wrapped around Lily’s brain stem and placed it in a glass container sealing the top with magic as soon as she was out of the surgical room. Andi raised the container to eye level and grinned. “I know someone who has friends who would be very interested in you.”

The Peninsula Paris, Paris, France

Andi knocked on the door to her daughter’s room and smirked as she heard shuffling around behind the door before it opened, and her dishevelled daughter appeared. “Mum, uh, hi?”

“Hello Nymphadora,” Andi replied over the said woman’s protests. “I was hoping your Unspeakable friend would be here?”

Tonks blushed and looked away for a second, her hair turning bright pink. “W-why would he be here?”

Andi, with some effort, schooled her face into a passive expression fighting to urge to laugh. “The Aurors guarding Harry told me you’d left the hospital with him yesterday and haven’t been seen since. And when I arrived back last night the ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign was on the doorknob.”

“Mum, I’m twenty-two years old!” Tonks protested.

This time Andi did laugh and smiled at Tonks. “I am quite aware Dora; I wasn’t here to chastise you over your choice of sexual partners…”

“Mum, please, PLEASE never say the words ‘sexual partners’ to me again, ever again.”

Andi bit back another laugh and simply smiled at Tonks, leaning in to plant a kiss on her cheek. “As I was saying, I was simply here to give your boyfriend…”

Once again Andi was interrupted by Tonks. “We’re not… he’s not… Damn it, Mum…”

Andi laughed once again and grinned evilly. “Oh, this makes up for all the headaches you caused me when you were at Hogwarts.”

“I was there for those!” Nick called out from inside the room.

“You shut up!” Tonks bit back at him turning to face her mother again. “Can you please tell me why you’re here so this can end?”

A smiling Andi handed her daughter the glass container she was carrying. “This is the thing that was inside Lily,” Andi paused glancing to each side of the hall to make sure they were alone and leaned in lowering her voice to a whisper. “We believe it was blocking her memories. I thought some of Nick’s friends might like to examine it.”

Nick had gotten up off Tonks’s bed and walked to the door, he glanced at the container and nodded. “They certainly would. Thank you, Missus Tonks, I’ll make sure its hand-delivered to my eh… friends.”

Andi nodded and resumed her smile, which worried Tonks. “Please remember to use protection you two, I’m too young for grandkids.”

Tonks groaned as she closed the door and walked back into her room. Nick, however, stopped as Tonks flopped onto the bed. “You seemed quite vehement in your protest that we weren’t an item.”

Tonks glanced at him looking slightly alarmed. “Oh, come on, this is a fling, I thought you knew that.”

“I see…” Nick replied in a voice that told her he did not know that.

“Nick, I…” Tonks began but Nick waved his hand at her grabbing his coat and slipping his shoes on. “It’s fine, I have to go back anyway and drop this at the lab. I’ll see you around Tonks.”

Without another word Tonks watched Nick walkout as tears ran down her cheeks, her hair dulling from pink to a mousy brown. Tonks fell back onto the bed, covering her eyes with her arm. “Fuck…”

Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital, Paris, France

Magical Treatment Wing

3 August 1995

Lily groaned as she raised her hand to her face, another hand gently pulled it away and forced her eye open to shine a penlight in. “Good morning Missus Potter, do you mind if I ask you some questions?”

Lily nodded and the doctor who had helped Andi the previous day looked down at the questions his colleague had provided. “What house were you sorted into at Hogwarts?”

“Gryffindor.”

“Who was your best friend at Hogwarts?”

“Alice Longbottom.”

“Who is the godfather of your son, Harry?”

“Sirius ‘Lily is going to kick my ass all over France’ Black.”

A tug of a smile appeared at the corner of the doctor’s lips as he looked down the list of questions. “What is your son’s birth date?”

“July thirty-first nineteen eighty.”

“What is your sister’s name?”

“Petunia E… no wait, Dursley, Petunia Dursley is her married name.”

The doctor smiled as he closed the folder. “Welcome back Missus Potter, it seems we successfully removed the blocks on your memory and stuck it up Albus Dumbledore at the same time. I believe that’s what’s called a win, win.”

Lily smirked. “I’ll drink to that, eventually.”

The doctor nodded and walked to the door, allowing Andi and Apolline to enter. As soon as they were inside Andi rushed over and wrapped Lily in the hug she’d been holding in since they brought her in for questioning. “I’m so glad you’re ok, I’m going to kill that bastard Dumbledore for what he did to you.”

Lily squeezed Andi and smiled but turned serious when she locked eyes with Apolline. “Madame Delacour, where is Harry?”

The two women glanced at each other, they knew there were no post-surgery complications, thanks to the application of magic while Lily was unconscious. They’d kept her sedated to allow her to sleep through the re-integration of her memories. But now came the difficult part, the part where they explained what happened to Harry. Not just this recent incident, but his history dating back to 1981.

Chateau Delacour, Neuilly-sur-Seine, France

Once Andi, Apolline, and Lily arrived back at the Chateau they walked to Apolline’s office and sat down, a couple of minutes later Hermione, Emma, and Fleur appeared. The two looked hesitant as they glanced warily at Lily, who gave them a gentle smile. “I don’t bite, girls.”

Hermione nodded and walked forward giving Lily a small bow. “Hello Missus Potter, I’m Hermione Granger, Harry’s girlfriend.”

“And I am Fleur Delacour, Harry’s girlfriend.”

Lily blinked and glanced between the three older women. “My son has two girlfriends?”

“It’s a complicated situation,” Apolline explained.

“When isn’t it…” Hermione mumbled in an exasperated tone, this caused Lily to laugh, which surprised the other women in the room. “I’m sorry, you just reminded me of my younger self, I often had that experience when dealing with James.”

Andi returned Lily’s smile. “Hermione and Harry remind me a great deal of you and James, Minerva thinks so too.”

Lily’s face darkened when her old head of house was mentioned. “And where was the old bitch when my son was in danger, where are Alice, Frank, and Sirius?! The Longbottoms were supposed to take care of Harry if Sirius wasn’t around. Even if he was, I expected them to make sure Sirius was raising Harry right, what happened after I ‘died’?”

“Harry was sent to the Dursley’s!” Hermione cried out angrily.

Lily paled as Hermione explained, to the best of her knowledge what happened to Harry after Lily and James were sent away. Having known Harry best of everyone in the room, the other women remained silent as over the next couple of hours Hermione detailed every major event in Harry’s life between 1981 and 1995 as best she knew them. There were large gaps between 81 and 91 in Hermione’s knowledge, Harry never wanted to appear weak or be pitied so he never shared most of what happened in those dark years.

By the time Hermione finished, Lily was shaking with rage. “That, bastard, that son of a goat fucker, I am going to KILL HIM!” Lily ranted as she paced the office, her hands curled into fists. “My son was never supposed to be sent to that… that place!”

Lily spun around to face the three older women but was only really addressing two. “If Sirius was in Azkaban, where were Alice and Frank?!”

Andi and Apolline glanced at each other before Andi explained. “The day after Voldemort fell the Lestrange’s and Barty Crouch Junior attacked Longbottom House. They tortured Alice and Frank with the Cruciatus curse until they went insane. They’ve been in the Janus Thickey Ward at St. Mungo’s ever since.”

Lily stopped and stared at Andi as Hermione whispered an explanation to her mother. “B-but we cured that, or at least we were on the way… Andi you were there, you saw my research paper, that potion was viable. Don’t tell me someone stuck it in a drawer after I died?”

Andi frowned and shook her head. “I’m afraid it’s a bit more than that, I did try and continue your research after you went away. But someone had locked it behind a class seven security seal.”

“The only people who can do that are the Supreme Mugwump or an ICW representative,” Apolline added as an explanation to Fleur, Hermione, and Emma.

“But why…? Unless…” Lily asked but then paused. “This, this is about that fucking prophecy, the one Dumbledore heard from that nut Trelawney,” Lily explained, which earned a derisive snort from Hermione. Lily turned and smiled at the younger witch. “I see you share my feelings.”

“Divination is woolly at best and only works for those who have the sight, Sybil Trelawney most certainly doesn’t. I spent five minutes in that class and only because Harry was there, I walked out and never went back.”

“I agree Miss Granger, nonetheless Dumbledore believed her, and he convinced us to believe it too. Whatever he did he did in service of that bloody prophecy and his vaunted Greater Good, which was a load of old toss at the time and is even more so now. We knew we had run because Voldemort was after us, the prophecy was immaterial.”

“How does that relate to Alice and Frank?” Andi asked.

“If Sirius was locked up in Azkaban the only other people, we trusted with raising our baby were Alice and Frank. They would have demanded Harry be given to them; they would have taken it to the floor of the Wizengamot. My potion would have saved them, so of course, Dumbledore had it sealed. He didn’t want Alice and Frank interfering with his plans for Harry, whatever they are…”

“But, Missus Potter, how would this potion help Mister and Missus Longbottom?” Fleur asked.

“It’s not specifically for people who’ve been tortured by the Cruciatus Curse, but its certainly a good use case for the potion. My potion would have allowed a person’s magical aura to expand and allow them to cross into another person. If it worked like intended, it could have been used in cases where the person’s magic is damaged allowing them to draw on another source until their core recovered. The crossing was a side effect, my potion could have helped them rebuild their shattered minds.”

Hermione and Fleur glanced at each other wide-eyed. “Missus Potter, could this potion be used to… reach someone whose personality has been overwritten by someone else?”

Lily thought for a moment and smiled. “Someone with shaggy black hair and beautiful green eyes?”

Hermione and Fleur blushed but nodded in unison. Lily’s smile faded as she thought things through. “My memories are still very muddled girls and may be for some time. If I had my notes…”

Andi paused and looked away in thought. “I might… know someone who can help. Give me a few hours.”

“Don’t take to long Andi, we’re running short on the number of days I can hold Arry, if I’m forced to release him, he will go back to Dumbledore.”

Andi nodded and hurriedly left. When she was gone Lily turned to Fleur and Hermione with a grin. “Now, you’ve told me all about Harry’s exciting adventures at Hogwarts, but you failed to explain why he has two girlfriends…”

Fleur and Hermione glanced at each other as their mother’s grinned, this was going to be a long talk.

Muguet, Paris France

Andi was waiting in a small magical café near the centre of Paris when her contact arrived. It had only taken Nick a few hours to arrive back in the country from Switzerland after she’d sent an express owl mail to the ICW headquarters. “This sounded urgent.”

“It is, it’s regarding… Andi paused and cast a Muffliato spell around their booth. “It’s regarding Harry, we have a way to help him. But we need you to do something.”

“Ok, I’m listening,” Nick replied warily.

“We need access to this potion recipe, it’s stored in the ICW vaults,” Andi explained sliding a piece of parchment across the table to him.

Nick picked up the piece of parchment and read it. “Flare Patiare Innubere Nostris potion… I’ve never heard of it.”

“You wouldn’t have, it’s a potion Lily Potter was working on before she went into hiding. Dumbledore locked it behind a class seven seal.”

Nick let out a low whistle and leaned back in his chair. “Even my head of department doesn’t have that level of access. And if I tried breaking in, I would be dead before I even got five steps…” Nick stopped considering his options. “Then again, my boss is a fan so… if I happened to drop Potter’s name into the conversation…”

“There’s a chance?” Andi asked trying not to sound hopeful.

“A small one, I will let you know how I go.”

“Before you go…” Andi said quickly as Nick got up, making him sit back down. “What are your intentions towards my daughter?”

Nick’s face darkened. “I don’t have any intentions towards your daughter, it was a fling and it's over. I’ll let you know about the potion.”

Nick got up and hurriedly left, leaving a flummoxed Andromeda Tonks behind.

Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital, Paris, France

Magical Treatment Wing

3 August 1995

Fleur, Hermione, Apolline, Emma, Lily, Andromeda, and Tonks waited in a room near Harry’s. They’d been sent a message at breakfast that Nick would be returning with a package for them. While five of the women seemed excited by this news, one was pensive, and her daughter looked upset, her hair, instead of bubble-gum pink was her natural mousy brown and her brown eyes seemed dulled, Andi had only seen this once before when Tonks broke up with her first boyfriend. Andi wandered over to Tonks and sat down. “Dora, what happened between you and Nick?”

“Nothing, it’s fine, we had a fling and now…” Tonks began but Andi interrupted her. “It’s over?” Andi finished to which Tonks nodded. “Nick said the same thing.”

“You asked about us?”

“I asked him what his intentions were towards my daughter, he said he had none. He was angry.”

“He misconstrued my intentions, I was looking for a good time, he was looking for… more.”

“Dora, you know better than that!?” Andi replied angrily, drawing looks from the other women in the room.

Tonks lowered her head and looked shamefaced. “I know, but… Ok, I guess I had a crush on him at school and this was my chance to live out that fantasy. He was always hung up on Penny Heywood, she was the prettiest and most popular girl in our year. Penny was also his girlfriend from Third year until he left. I was surprised when she didn’t go after him and even more surprised when she married Skye Parkin.”

“The Chaser for the Hollyhead Harpies?” Andi inquired.

“The same, that was the wedding I went to about two summers ago. Nick either didn’t get invited or turned it down, I guess a wedding isn’t something you invite your ex to.” Tonks replied with a wry smile.

“It certainly wasn’t something I invited my ex’s too when I married your father,” Andi agreed. “You should at least apologise to him. You both should have been clearer about your intentions.”

“I know… but I…” Tonks started but then ducked her head. “I’m not sure he did…”

“Dora…” Andi sighed, and Tonks groaned. “I panicked! I didn’t want to put a name to this thing, but we… and he… and then you showed up and… it was a mess.”

“Clearly,” Andi replied sarcastically. “Talk to him, explain you want to take things slow. If he cares about you, he’ll listen. If he doesn’t then he’s not worth you crying over.”

“Thanks, Mum,” Tonks replied, hugging Andi.

“I love you, Dora.”

Tonks smiled. “I love you too.”

As they broke apart there was a knock at the door and Nick stepped inside. “Good morning.”

“Good morning Unspeakable Carlstrom, what news do you have for us?” Apolline asked.

“Not so much news, as a present,” Nick responded, placing a briefcase on the bed. He opened it to reveal four potion vials. He tapped the two in the middle. “Two vials of the Potter potion, two vials of the antidote and instructions with the blessings of my head of department and the new Supreme Mugwump.”

“You just happened to have a batch of potion lying around?” Lily asked incredulously.

Nick barked out a laugh. “No, just because there is a class seven seal on the recipe doesn’t mean some of my colleagues have taken to experimenting on it unofficially. It helps that Dumbledore was never particularly interested in what the Unspeakables were doing when he was Supreme Mugwump so usually if we kept it on the down-low, we could do basically what we wanted in terms of research. At least they could, I was never invited into that division. I think they were afraid I would break things…”

“Thank you, Unspeakable Carlstrom.”

Nick nodded and made to leave but Tonks's voice stopped him. “Nick, can we talk?”

“Yeah, we should.” He replied leading them outside. The other women in the room quickly gathered around the door, not because they were attracted to the relationship drama, just because they were worried about Tonks.

“Nick I…”

“Let, let me start…” Nick replied Tonks nodded silently. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have acted like a child. We had fun and that was a shitty way to end things. I’m glad I got to see you again Tonks, you look great and you’re doing well for yourself.”

Tonks smiled a little. “You were a bit of jerk, but I should have said something, it wasn’t my intention to lead you on. And… look I’m crap at this mushy stuff, I like you and I don’t want this to end.”

“But you…”

“I got spooked, all the guys I’ve dated before have been jerks. The only guys that treated me kindly aren’t my type or are too young for me. I just want to take things slow, that is if you’re still interested?”

Nick smiled and walked up to Tonks, resting his hands on her hips. “I’m interested, Miss Tonks.”

After kissing Tonks Nick pulled back, still smiling. “So, are you planning to hang around?”

Nick shook his head. “Can’t, I’m just passing through to deliver the potion. My next stop is South America, there’s a Dark Wizard down there that’s been experimenting on kids. My boss takes a pretty dim view on that sort of thing.”

“Do you want some company?”

“I would love some, but both your Mum and my boss would have my head if I dragged you into that sort of danger and frankly your Mum is scarier. Stay here and help Potter kick Dumbledore’s ass. I’ll be back in a few weeks.”

Tonks reached out and grabbed Nick by the arm as he turned away. “Be careful.”

Nick leaned in and kissed Tonks on the forehead. “Always.”

As Nick left the other women emerged from the room, Andi hugged Tonks. “You did well.”

Tonks blushed, her hair matching her face. “You were listening…”

“Yes, but that’s not the only reason I hugged you, I’m leaving for a while too.”

“What, where?”

“Sirius was committed to some facility in Switzerland, I got the specific address from a contact in the ICW medical unit. Now I’m going to drag that stupid mutt home.”

“Good luck, Mum.”

“Thank you, Dora.”

Tonks turned around smiling to Hermione and Fleur, wrapping her arms around their shoulders. “Now we’ve fixed my boyfriend problems, let’s fix yours.”

To Be Continued…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologise if this chapter focused a bit too much on Nick/Tonks, someone suggested the pairing in a review, and I ran with it. Usually, I don’t like giving my OC this much of a spotlight but that’s how my brain worked the chapter. But that’s the last we’ll see of him, possibly for the rest of the story. I’m just disappointed that I missed out on the opportunity for both a Simpsons and Pinky and the Brain reference in this chapter. Oh well, maybe next time.
> 
> I also made a small change to last chapter, taking out the idea that James cheated.
> 
> Oh, and I was borrowing from myself for the potion, it comes from my story, Don’t Dream it’s Over. Which is an angsty Harry/Hermione post-war one-shot.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Harry Potter Franchise or its characters. All characters used are the property of their respective owners.
> 
> This story is rated M for violence, language, & sexual themes.
> 
> A Special Thanks to my Alpha/Beta on this story kgfinkel.
> 
> This story is a Horcrux free zone.
> 
> If you don’t like the story, don’t read it.
> 
> Note: I am drawing inspiration for the function of the potion from RobSt’s story Banking on Her. I claim no rights to the idea.
> 
> Warning: Manipulative Dumbledore & Weasley Bashing (Ron, Molly, & Ginny.)

_Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital, Paris, France_

_Magical Treatment Wing_

_3 August 1995_

Harry looked up from his bed as an unfamiliar doctor entered his room carrying a potions vial. “Good morning Mister Potter, how are you this morning?”

Harry frowned, pulling on his restraints. “Restrained, how long am I going to be kept here for? I want to go home to Ginny and the Weasley’s.”

The doctor pulled the table up the bed to Harry and placed the potions vial in front of him, undoing one of his wrist restraints. “Today if you’d like, Madame Delacour has signed off on your release.”

“Really?” Harry and his Auror guard exclaimed in surprised, to which the doctor nodded. “I have the document here if you’d like to examine it Auror?”

The Auror shook his head and sat down as Harry grinned smugly. “So what do I have to do to get out of here?”

“Just drink this nutrient potion and I’ll walk you to the entrance.”

Harry eyed the potion dubiously and the doctor smiled kindly. “I can assure that nothing in that potion will harm you. It would violate my healer oath.”

Harry nodded and grabbed the potion and sculled it with gusto. After slamming the potion vial back on the table in front of him he looked at the doctor. “Ok, let’s… go…”

Harry swayed on the bed and fell back unconscious. The Auror was out of his seat in an instant pointing his wand at the doctor who raised his hands placatingly. “At ease, Auror, I didn’t lie, that was a nutrient potion, I simply failed to mention it also had a strong sedative mixed in.”

“What’s going on?” The Auror asked as Apolline Delacour entered and the doctor moved away from the bed. Behind Apolline, a pair of beds were wheeled in and set up flush with Harry’s bed. Finally, Hermione and Fleur entered followed by Emma, Tonks, and Lily. “Auror, please wait outside. I will take over guarding Mister Potter for the time being.”

“Yes, Ma’am.”

Once the doctor and Auror were gone and the door was closed Hermione and Fleur disrobed. Both girls had stripped down to their underwear per the instructions that came with the potions. As the two climbed on the beds either side of Harry and pressed themselves against him, Lily had to poke Tonks in the side to snap her out of the vacant stare she was directing at Fleur. Tonks blushed and scratched her face. “Sorry.”

“My, my, Auror Tonks, what would your new boyfriend say?” Fleur teased.

“I think he’d be quite pleased,” Tonks replied with a grin.

Hermione rolled her eyes as her mother handed the two a potion each. “Are you ready, Fleur?”

Fleur nodded. “Very ready.”

The two downed the potion and lay down, closing their eyes. Tonks glanced between the other women. “Now what?”

“We wait,” Apolline replied.

* * *

_Sainte-Anne Hospital Centre, Paris France_

_Long Term Psychiatric Care Ward_

Arthur Weasley ran his fingers through his thinning hair as a doctor approached. “Arthur Weasley?”

“Yes, hello, how is my daughter?” Arthur rapid-fire asked as he shot out of his seat.

“Please remain, calm sir, my name is Doctor Allard, I am overseeing your daughter’s case. To answer your question physically your daughter is fine. Ginny’s mental health is our concern. But it might be best if you saw for yourself.”

Doctor Allard led Arthur Weasley further into the hospital through several corridors until they arrived at a series of rooms with one-way mirrors. At the third room, the two stopped. Inside Ginny was sitting on a bed cradling a bundle of blankets in her arms, she was whispering to the blankets as a door opened and someone stepped inside. “That man is a junior colleague of mine Doctor Varon, he’s had the most contact with Ginny out of all my colleagues.”

Allard reached out and switched on the speaker on the wall as Ginny placed the bundle of blankets on the bed and ran over to the blonde-haired, brown-eyed man. Ginny wrapped her arms around Varon and tilted her head back to kiss him on the lips, with Varon turning his head at the last second so it was only a peck on the cheek. “Harry, I’ve missed you! Come quick, James is waking up!”

Ginny grabbed Varon by the hand and dragged him over to the bed, gathering the bundle in her arms again. She angled the bundle so Varon, Allard, and Arthur could see that there was nothing but blankets. Arthur gaped in shock and worry as he glanced at Allard. “Ginny believes that any man entering the room, but especially Doctor Varon is Harry Potter, that the two are married and this is their house and finally that bundle of blankets is their son, James.”

“What happened?”

“Being separated from Harry Potter caused Ginny to have a psychotic break, she has disassociated with reality and created a new life in her mind. Rehabilitating her could take years if we can ever help her. We do have another more drastic alternative. But please bear in mind I would only suggest this if the situation were hopeless and it was the last option to ensure Ginny’s quality of life.”

“Please, tell me, I want to help my daughter.”

Allard nodded and began. “We could obliviate her of all knowledge of Harry Potter, to Ginny it would be like he never existed.”

“But how would that work? Harry is the most famous person… in our world…”

Allard nodded reluctantly. “Hence why I am hesitant to mention it. We would have to wipe her memory and construct a new mundane identity for Ginny. Of course, her magic would be bound, and she would be sent to a place where she is least likely to encounter him. While breaking an Obliviation is unusual it’s not unheard of.”

Arthur let out a slow breath and he rested his back against the opposite wall. “I want to help my daughter… but to lose her forever…”

“Mister Weasley, we’re not at that point yet, as I said we would only discuss that if the situation was hopeless. It is not yet hopeless. It may take years, but we can undo the damage that has been done to Ginny. Please have some faith in us, sir.”

Arthur nodded. “Thank you, Doctor, I need to return to England soon. Is it ok if I return in a few days to see Ginny?”

“Of course.”

* * *

_Elsewhere…_

The dull grey room darkened as the fake Harry fell unconscious, the real Harry got up from his seat against the wall and exhaled. He knew he was short on time so he had to decide quickly what he would do now. In a few hours maybe less, he would find himself under the thrall of Albus Dumbledore and the Weasley’s once again. No one would be able to save him from whatever Dumbledore had planned for him once that happened.

Harry wasn’t sure what would happen if he killed his doppelganger, and that fear had held him back from acting until now. He didn’t want to end up a drooling vegetable trapped inside his mind for the rest of his life, but now that alternative seemed preferable to being Dumbledore’s puppet. Harry almost smirked, Ginny would get her husband, and she’d even get to change shitty nappies, though they would be Harry’s instead of their children’s.

Harry felt his way across the room, hitting his foot on something solid as he reached the other side. He stopped and reached out grabbing his doppelganger by the hair and dragging him to his feet before throwing him down to the floor again. Harry loomed over this simpering Ginny lover as his eyes glowed in anger. “Ok you miserable bastard, it’s time to end this.”

* * *

_Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital, Paris, France_

_Magical Treatment Wing_

When Hermione and Fleur opened their eyes, they found themselves in a darkened room, only the sound of flesh smacking against flesh echoing off the walls gave them an indication of the size. Hermione wondered if there was a way to summon more light and she felt her wand drop into her hand. “Lumos.”

Fleur shielded her eyes from the light of Hermione’s Lumos charm as she glanced at the younger witch. “How did you do that?”

Hermione shrugged in response. “I thought about needing more light in this room and I felt my wand drop into my hand.”

Fleur raised an eyebrow and thought about her wand and then found it in her hand. “Interesting.”

The two put aside the curiosity of their experience and rushed forward pulling one Harry off another. The Harry in their arms kicked out at the other who lay on the ground bleeding and glaring at his look-a-like. “Let me go, I’m going to kill this bastard with my face!”

“Harry, no, you can’t, not now.”

“Why not, he said horrible things about you and believes the sun shines out of Dumbledore’s ass!” Harry protested as he struggled to get free of the girls.

“Don’t you dare sully the good name of Professor Dumbledore, he’s a great man!” The doppelganger exclaimed.

“So great he left an infant with his abusive relatives.” Fleur spat angrily.

“He was protecting me from people like you! People who were going to use my fame to get ahead! I know what you’re all about now, Professor Dumbledore was right to encourage me to go with Ginny. He knew you’d use my fame for yourself! All Veela are WHORES! I can’t let them ruin our world with their pollution! You’re both filth! You’re polluting our world with your loose morals and radical ideas! We can’t let you taint our world and destroy it! Professor Dumbledore won’t let you, once he’s dealt with You-Know-Who he’ll deal with the muggles and the creatures and our world will be safe!” The doppelganger screamed as all semblance of sanity fell away to reveal the twisted creature Dumbledore had created underneath.

“You sound like Malfoy…” Harry spat sounding disgusted.

“I’m _nothing_ like Malfoy! I’m a follower of Professor Dumbledore’s light. The great man has plans for muggles, he doesn’t want them wiped out like You-Know-Who, but we must protect ourselves. Our world can’t handle people like Granger, change needs to happen slowly and in small amounts over many years. That little muggles bitch would make us up-end our world in an instant! I can’t let that happen, I won’t!”

“You’re exactly like Malfoy, your brand of genocide is more insidious but none the less it has the same result. The joke is you’re condemning Magical England to death in the name of protecting it.” Hermione explained.

“What? How?”

“If you isolate Magical Britain from mundane born witches and wizards the birth rate will decline, eventually the Purebloods will be so inbred they won’t be able to spell let alone cast a spell. If Dumbledore…”

“ _Professor_ Dumbledore!” The doppelganger protested.

“Whatever, if he wants Magical Britain that badly he can have it. Harry, Fleur, and I just want to leave and live in peace. But since we’re not following that bastard's plans, he created you.” Hermione finished, the venom at the end laced into her words.

“That _bastard_ is the greatest wizard who’s ever lived, you’ll never be as great a witch as he is a wizard!”

“Good, I’d never want to be compared to him in any way,” Hermione replied dismissively.

“Why can’t Dumbledore just leave me alone?!” Harry yelled angrily at his other-self.

“Because he needs me!” The doppelganger yelled in reply.

“For what?” Fleur demanded.

“I… uh…”

Harry shook his head. “You don’t know, because I don’t, he won’t tell us. He never shares his reasoning for anything. We’re just supposed to nod and go along with it.”

“Of course, we are, he’s Professor Dumbledore, the greatest…”

“Yeah, we heard you the first time,” Harry replied cutting the fake off. “If he doesn’t trust me why should I trust… you know what never mind, I know what your answer will be.”

“You know because you know the truth, you just can’t accept it because _they_ have corrupted your mind against the Headmaster. But you won’t listen…” The fake said, now talking more to himself than to them as he got to his feet. Harry, Hermione, and Fleur also rose to watch him warily.

“You won’t listen, so I’ll just have to show you that I’M RIGHT!”

A pair of walls appeared separating Fleur and Hermione from Harry as the doppelganger dove at him. With walls enclosing him on three sides Harry had no choice but to be tackled by the fake and the two disappeared.

* * *

Hermione and Fleur’s eyes snapped open and they found themselves in the real world, their respective mothers gently rolled them onto their backs and moved to administer the antidote. Both girls shot their hands up and grabbed the older women by the wrists before they could tip the antidote down their throats. “STOP!”

“Hermione, what’s wrong?” Emma asked alarmedly.

“We’re not finished, the fake Harry threw us out of his head, but our Harry is still trapped in there. We need to go back in.”

“Hermione, you’ve been gone for hours, the instructions warned that if you go too long without taking the antidote…”

“I know the risks, but it's worth it to save Harry, and Fleur feels the same.”

“Oui.”

The two mothers glanced at each other before nodding reluctantly and the two girls resumed their positions beside their man. “Hold on Harry, we’re coming.”

As the two girls closed their eyes there was a stifled cough from the back of the room. Appoline glared over at Tonks who was poorly suppressing a laugh. “Sorry, I couldn’t resist…”

“I’m sure you could have Auror Tonks,” Apolline replied dryly.

“I blame my boyfriend… he’s corrupted me.”

“It’s that going to be your default excuse from now on?” Lily asked.

“Yup.”

* * *

_4 Privet Drive, Surrey, G.B._

Harry awoke to someone banging on the door to his increasingly cramped cupboard, despite the Dursley’s barely feeding him he was still growing, if only slightly. He shook his head and grabbed his mangled glasses off the shelf as the door was ripped open and Harry was dragged out by his hair. “Get out here Freak, it’s time for breakfast and you’re slacking off. Get in there and cook. If anything is burnt, I’ll give you a good hiding!”

With a literal kick up the ass, Harry stumbled into the kitchen and hurried to the fridge, pulling out the fixings for a full English Breakfast. “Y-yes, sir.”

Vernon ‘harrumphed’ and turned to his newspaper. It was only him and Harry in the house as Dudley was away at school and Petunia was off at a Ladies retreat with the women from the church. Vernon didn’t buy into that religious nonsense but to maintain appearances both Dursley’s had to participate. “Bloody government, they spend all their money on freaks and the poor while I pay taxes out of my nose. Those mongrels don’t contribute to society, the whole lot of them should be put down, isn’t that right boy?”

Harry looked up from the bacon he was frying. “Y-yes, sir.”

“That’s right, freaks and mongrels like your parents deserve what they get.”

Harry hurriedly finished cooking breakfast and then sat on the floor in a corner outside Vernon’s line of sight as he ate. Once Vernon was finished, he called Harry back over only to backhand the fifteen-year-old boy in the face, sending him tumbling towards the wall. “The bacon was too crispy,” Vernon complained as he kicked Harry in the stomach sending him flying into the hall and slamming against the wall of his cupboard. “And the bloody eggs were runny, I almost dropped some on my clean shirt!” As Harry fell into a heap on the floor Vernon brought his foot down hard on Harry’s arm, causing a sickening crunch to echo through the otherwise quiet house as Harry almost bit through his lip to stop himself from screaming. “You’d better shape up, freak, or next time you’re in for a real beating.”

As Harry crawled one-handed to the cupboard and collapsed inside, he swallowed the blood that had pooled in his mouth. If he spat it up on the floor Vernon would give him an even worse thrashing. Harry wanted to return to the dream he’d been having, two beautiful girls, one blonde the other brunette had been cradling him in their arms, professing their love. But Harry knew there was no escape from his nightmare of a life. He thought there had been a glimmer of hope a few years ago when something came through the mail for him, but Vernon ripped it up and tossed the envelope in the fire. He’d then declared that Harry wouldn’t be going to St. Brutus’s but instead would be staying home to clean and cook for the Dursley’s. According to Vernon a Freak like Harry didn’t need an education, all Harry was good for was being a servant.

Harry began to cry as he lay on the soiled mattress he had to sleep on as his body screamed in pain. He could hear something in the distance, yelling, but dismissed it as the neighbours arguing. Harry wanted so desperately to be free of this unending torment, but he knew the only release would be death and Vernon was never going to let Harry escape that easily.

* * *

_The Kusnacht Practice, Kusnacht, Switzerland_

While Andi was angry that her favourite cousin had been whisked away from his family and held in isolation from what Dumbledore had planned for Harry. She couldn’t deny that the Kusnacht Practice was one of the most beautiful places she’d ever visited regardless of its purpose. As she approached the villa Sirius had been assigned a tall man with greying brown hair approached. “Missus Tonks, I was just informed you had arrived.”

“Yes, I am here to collect Lord Black,” Andi explained bluntly.

“I see… unfortunately we are at a crucial stage in Mister Black’s treatment, to remove him…” Muller blustered, but Andi wasn’t having any of it and cut across him in an instant. She was Chief Healer of St. Mungo’s Hospital for Magical Maladies and a Black. Better men than Muller had tried to bluster their way through her and failed.

“You _will_ step aside and allow me to see Lord Black and you will do it now. You are not a member of the full-time staff of this facility and your ability to practice medicine is hanging by a thread, do not push me Mister Muller or you will experience firsthand the folly of crossing a Black.”

Doctor Muller swallowed hard and stepped back and out of Andi’s way. As soon as she had walked passed Muller ran off to find the nearest bottle firewhiskey. He had just faced death today, and her name was Andromeda Tonks.

As Andi entered the villa, she found Sirius sat in a chair near the window, there was a vacant expression on his face as he looked up at his cousin. “Hello…”

“Merlin’s beard Siri…” Andi muttered as she ran over to him pulling the drip bag off the stand and considering the drugs that were being poured into him. It was a simple potion concoction being fed to Sirius through a mundane IV drip. The dosage was so high it left him a drooling idiot, Andi concluded the only real change from normal Sirius was the drooling bit but still she had to get him out of there and flush the potion from his system quickly. Andi dropped the drip bag in Sirius’s lap and began rolling him out of the villa only for her to stop when two-armed security men pointed their wands at her and Sirius. A new doctor stepped out from between them, this one with dark hair and a wicked glint in his eyes. “Unfortunately, Missus Tonks I’m going to have to veto Mister Black’s removal from this facility. Professor Dumbledore’s express instructions were that Mister Black be held as an inpatient until the situation in England calmed. We can’t risk the Boy-Who-Lived being exposed to unstable elements like Mister Black after so many years in Azkaban. Who knows what ways Mister Black could lash out at his godson and do him unintended harm?”

“I’m not leaving without Sirius,” Andi warned them.

“That’s quite all right Missus Tonks, you are free to stay, we can even exchange notes on mental health care, over dinner, perhaps?” The man offered with a grin.

“Only if you want to wear dinner on your head,” Andi growled.

“That’s a shame, regardless you’ll remain here for the time being. I’m sure Professor Dumbledore will let you return to England eventually.”

“Eventually meaning once he’s finished with whatever he has planned for Harry?”

“I don’t care to speculate. Now, if you would…” The man replied, indicating to the villa with a nod of his head.

Andi smirked at him. “I don’t think so, be seeing you.”

Andi had a grip on Sirius’s shoulder as the emergency Portkey activated and the two were transported from Switzerland to France in an instant. The man screamed in frustration as the two guards looked at him in askance. “There’s nothing we can do now, that fucking woman had a Portkey! Why didn’t anyone think of that?!”

“Sir, it’s a muggles facility, we can’t put wards up here…” One of the guards offered feebly.

“Fuck, get lost the both of you, I have to go write Dumbledore…”

* * *

_4 Privet Drive, Surrey, G.B._

Hermione pounded vainly on the transparent wall that separated her and Fleur from Harry. They’d seen days pass in what felt like minutes, it was the same sequence of events over and over. Harry would cook for the Dursley’s, they would find a minor fault and use it as an excuse to beat on him. Harry’s Aunt had appeared after the first day and rather than curtailing her husband’s violent tendencies she instead pushed him to perform harsher punishments. Fleur and Hermione stood near the end of the corridor and could see the glee she took every time Vernon laid into Harry.

Hermione shook with anger as she brandished her wand again. “Reducto!”

The spell impacted the wall, but no mark or indentation was made. Hermione was getting desperate, but Fleur stood back watching and thinking. Hermione screamed in frustration and rounded on her blonde bondmate. “Fleur, help me!”

“I am, I’m thinking,” Fleur replied.

“About?” Hermione demanded.

“The wall doesn’t yield to spells or mundane explosives, I don’t think continuing to cast spells at it will help. We have to be smarter than the fake posing as Harry, we have to use the one advantage we have that he doesn’t, our love and our bond with Harry.”

“How?”

Fleur offered her hand to Hermione but as she reached out the scene changed. The two were now watching Harry inside his cupboard, curled in a ball with his broken arm in a makeshift sling. Harry’s aunt had made one out of Dudley’s old bedsheets, arguing to her husband that Harry would be less useful around the house if he couldn’t use his left arm. The fake Harry emerged from the back wall of the cupboard and smirked down at the real Harry. “Poor little Harry, all alone in the world. I can change that; I can make the pain go away.”

Harry looked up at him, tears of pain and sadness running down his face. “How?”

“Take my hand, Harry, and then all of this will go away. I know someone who can protect you, keep you safe and even give you a family that will love you. That’s what you want right, you want to get away from these horrible people? I can keep you safe, just take my hand.”

Hermione spun around and grabbed Fleur’s hand, the two glowed and the wall shattered behind them. But they found themselves back in the street, away from Harry and his doppelganger. The two sprinted up the path to the house and Hermione blasted the door down without even slowing down. Vernon burst into the hallway with a look of shock and anger on his face. “You little bitch, come here!”

Vernon tried to snatch at Hermione as she ran passed and tried ripping the door of the cupboard open. The door wouldn’t budge so she pounded on it with Fleur as they both screamed Harry’s name.

* * *

Inside the cupboard, Harry jerked his hand away from his doppelganger as he heard a noise and then voices from outside. Voices he recognised, not just Vernon’s but Hermione and Fleur’s, as well as the memories, came flooding back and the pain disappeared. Harry’s head snapped around, but his doppelganger was gone. Hearing Fleur’s anguished screams spurred Harry into action as he burst out of the cupboard to find Hermione firing spells at Vernon who ignored them in favour of squeezing Fleur’s neck. “Watch this Freak, watch me kill this little blonde bitch!”

Harry couldn’t hear Hermione’s angered screams anymore as blood pounded through his body. Instead, he roared and dove at Vernon, the sword of Gryffindor materialising in his hands as he swung for Vernon’s head, separating the rotund man’s head from his non-existent neck. As Vernon’s head hit the floor, Fleur dropped to her knees as Hermione ran to her side and wrapped the older girl in a hug. Four Privet drive shattered around them leaving Harry, Hermione, Fleur, and the doppelganger standing once again in the featureless grey room.

* * *

The doppelganger glared at them and growled in anger. “Do you think this is over? You’ll never escape Potter; I don’t care how long it takes I will break you!”

Harry threw the goblin made blade he was holding on the ground and met the fake Harry’s stare. “Better men than you have tried.”

“But I’m not anyone, I’m you, I know all your secrets. I can torment you with your worst memories and your darkest fears. That was just a small sample, these bitches can’t stay here forever and keep saving your ass. Eventually, they’ll be gone, and your soul will belong to me.”

“No, it won’t!” Fleur declared standing up, pulling Hermione up with her. “Arry’s soul is already claimed by us, and ours by him. We will never let you have him!”

Hermione turned around, reaching out for her beloved Harry. “It’s time, we’re both ready if you are.”

Harry looked at her hand hesitantly. “Are you sure?”

The two girls smiled and nodded so Harry returned the smile and the nod and walked over to them, joining hands with the woman he loved and the woman he was beginning to love the same way. “So… what do we do?”

“Focus your thoughts on the other people in the bond. Don’t let yourselves get distracted and pour your love into those thoughts. That’s all you need to do, the power of our love will force him out.”

“No! I won’t let you do this!!” The fake screamed as he hurled curses at the trio that were now surrounded by a golden light. The light radiated out from them encompassing everything in the room. The last thing the three heard before the light consumed them was the pained screams of fake Harry.

* * *

_Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital, Paris, France_

_Magical Treatment Wing_

At the same time, the radiant golden light was being reflected in the real world, the three women who’d been joined by Andi after leaving Sirius to be treated all shielded their eyes as they tried to understand what was happening. Then Harry screamed and an inky black mist emerged from his mouth and was burned away as soon as it touched the light. As the light faded away the two girls opened their eyes and gently cupped one of Harry’s cheeks, smiling contently as their mothers rushed over to feed them the antidote.

Hermione gazed lazily up at Emma, the drain on her magic had left her feeling groggy. Emma just smiled down at her daughter as she gently brushed some hair out of her face. “I take it you won?”

“We kicked his ass,” Hermione replied before passing out.

**To Be Continued…**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope sixteen chapters of build-up were worth the payoff. If not, I’m sorry.
> 
> But that doesn’t mean the story is over… Voldemort was never the main antagonist of this story; he was a sideshow attraction. That’s why he was dispatched the way he was.
> 
> I have a question for all of you reading this, would any of you like to read a one-shot story that focuses on what Nick is doing in South America? I’d make it a one-shot because I don’t want to take anything away from this story. And then the people who aren’t interested don’t have to read it.
> 
> Secondly, I am currently writing another prompt-based story from Harmony & Co. Most of my stories will be prompt-based for a while. I have a few ideas of my own floating around, but I’ll intersperse them with the prompt stories. This one is short, so I’ll write it out first and then post it. But for every chapter of that, I finish I have to finish a chapter of this story. I’ll take a few days to write the second chapter of that story and then start Chapter 17 of this.
> 
> Quickly to address a Guest review, with regards to using details from the films. My first point of contact will always be the books, but if they describe a person’s eye colour (in the case of Victor) as simply ‘dark’ I will go and seek out the film info instead. I agree the faith in the source material in the films is terrible, but then I only saw the first one. The second one had giant spiders, no thanks. If I’m not going to watch Planet of the Spiders, the Doctor Who story from 1974, I’m sure as shit not going to watch giant CGI spiders in a movie theatre.
> 
> Lastly, I left an obscure 1960’s British TV reference in the chapter, I doubt anyone will pick up on it but I’d be curious to see if someone does.
> 
> Thanks for reviewing:
> 
> TheFrozenKillJoy, Booksdragon, Eklis, emjrabbitwolf, emma_elm, HarryandDaphnePotter.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Harry Potter Franchise or its characters. All characters used are the property of their respective owners.
> 
> This story is rated M for violence, language, & sexual themes.
> 
> A Special Thanks to my Alpha/Beta on this story kgfinkel.
> 
> This story is a Horcrux free zone.
> 
> If you don’t like the story, don’t read it.

_Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital, Paris, France_

_Magical Treatment Wing_

_4 August 1995_

Harry opened his eyes slowly, his head throbbed, and the world swam in front of him for a few moments before settling into a murky haze. Harry wondered what happened to that brilliant dream he’d been having about Fleur and Hermione. He wanted to go back instead of returning to the living nightmare his life had become. Someone moved beside him and soon he found himself faced with Apolline Delacour. “Good morning, Arry, how are you feeling?”

“I’m…” Harry paused when it finally dawned on him that he was speaking and moving. His eyes widened as he looked back at a smiling Apolline. “I-it wasn’t a dream… they… they saved me.”

“Oui, Fleur and Hermione both love you, the bond you share should leave you in no doubt of that fact.”

Harry looked down at the bed, shamefaced. “Missus Delacour, I said horrible things about them… Things no one who loves someone else should say. To and about them, how can I be part of this bond…”

Hermione and Fleur bursting through the door of Harry’s room stopped him from continuing as they climbed on the bed. Each girl straddled a leg as they focused their angry eyes on the poor boy that was their bond mate. “Harry James Potter! Don’t you _dare_ try to claim anything that thing that miserable old fuck put in your head represents how you feel. We know better. That wasn’t you, and you’re not allowed to feel guilty for things outside your control.”

“You are our bond-mate; we love you despite your faults. The three of us need to recognize when we slip into bad habits, I certainly need help remembering to pull the stick out of my bum.” Fleur explained before leaning into Harry’s ear. “Perhaps you know a different stick I could put there.” She whispered breathily.

Both her bond mates flushed deep red at her suggestion. “Fleur!” Hermione protested in a shrill voice.

Fleur was grinning as she leaned back. “Oui, love?”

“First, not the time, second...” Hermione shook her head, allowing her bushy hair to fly everywhere. “No, there is no second. Just… just… argh!”

At this Harry burst out laughing and pulled his girls into a hug. “Thank you, I love you.”

Both girls gave Harry a peck on the lips in response. The girls climbed off his bed and sat either side, grabbing a hand each. Harry turned to Apolline and ducked his head. “Madame Delacour, I am prepared for whatever punishment you deem necessary for attacking your Auror.”

Apolline morphed from the mother of Harry’s girlfriend to the head of the French DMLE in an instant. “Given my relationship to you, I handed the file over to the Minister. She has decided, with the agreement of the aggrieved party that a fine of five hundred Galleons and an apology would be sufficient punishment, given the exceptional circumstances.”

“Is that ok? I wouldn’t want anyone to accuse you or the Minister of letting me off lightly because of my relationship with Fleur or because I’m the ‘boy-who-lived’.” Harry replied with as much derisive emphasis he could manage on that hated nickname.

Apolline smiled and nodded. “Since the Auror in question will suffer no lasting injury and is returning to duty today, the fine and apology are appropriate punishments.”

Harry nodded and gingerly got out of bed. His body ached with the lack of activity and the drain the last few days had on his magic. “Can I do it now?”

Apolline gave Harry a small nod and looked out into the corridor summoning her Auror inside. Harry immediately bowed. “Sir, I am deeply sorry for attacking you, I hope I can someday make this up to you.”

To his surprise the Auror laughed, offering his hand for Harry to shake. “Mister Potter, because you attacked me, I got some leave, and I was able to go and see my parents. After that, you might have a few Aurors lining up to have you attack them.”

Harry smiled shaking the man’s hand. “That sounds tiring.”

“Thank you Auror,” Apolline interjected signalling that he was dismissed. The Auror gave an understanding nod and departed. Apolline closed the door over and turned back to Harry. “Arry, there is one other person who wants to see you.”

Harry raised an eyebrow. “Sirius?”

Hermione and Fleur got out of their seats and stopped either side of him. “He’s here too, but he’s still unconscious.” She explained when Harry gave her an alarmed look she added. “We’ll tell you everything soon.”

Harry nodded. “Well, then, who?”

Apolline opened the door again, summoning the person outside to walk in. Hermione and Fleur kept a firm grip on Harry’s arms as his legs almost gave out under him. “M-mum…”

Lily didn’t say anything instead running over to her son with tears streaming down her face wrapping her son in a powerful hug. Mother and son Potter held each other for a long time before Lily opened her arms and encouraged Fleur and Hermione to join them. The four held each other for a while longer before finally untangling themselves. Harry stared at his mother in disbelief. “But… how?”

Lily gave her son a brief overview of what Dumbledore had done and where she’d been in the years since 1981. By the end, Harry was shaking with anger. “I’m going to kill that fucking bastard…”

Fleur took one of his fists and gently pried it open so she could slip her hand in. “Arry, no, attacking him head-on is not the answer. We need to know why he’s doing this. We need to be smart and outplay him instead of charging in to confront him directly.

Harry took several deep breaths as he got a handle on his anger and magic. “You’re right, I know you’re right… he’s cost me so much, I need to make him pay.”

Hermione took Harry’s other hand and snuggled against him. “We will Harry, eventually we’ll make that bastard pay for everything he’s done to us.”

Lily still stood in front of Harry stroking his face as she smiled. “We can discuss that later, right now I’m more interested in the three of you. Harry love, how is it you have _two_ girlfriends?”

* * *

_Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft, Scotland_

Dumbledore stared down at the letter in his hand, it outlined the events in Switzerland. Dumbledore sighed and threw the letter on his desk and leaned back in his chair. He knew that this would complicate things. With his political power waning and his removal as Chief Warlock and Supreme Mugwump, it left him with few options to curtail Black’s influence. However, it didn’t worry him that much, his hold on Harry was absolute. Dumbledore was confident in Severus’s potion-making ability, even Black and Delacour couldn’t keep Harry in France forever. Eventually, he would be back in Britain and once he was it would a trivial matter to entice Granger back too. He needed both. He could use another witch, Greengrass or Bones sprang to mind, but Dumbledore was convinced Granger was the key. Granger’s mother was a muggle and easily disposed of, Amelia and the Greengrass parents were a more difficult proposition. If they were to suddenly disappear it would be noticed.

Another letter then arrived but this one caused Dumbledore to smile as he summoned his deputy. “Good morning Minerva.”

“Good morning Headmaster,” McGonagall responded, ever since he’d returned from France Minerva had been oddly formal with him. Dumbledore ignored it in favour of addressing the letter. “I just received information that Mister Potter is being released from a hospital in France. Please arrange to have the fifth year book list sent to him immediately.”

McGonagall frowned. “Headmaster, Mister Potter indicated he wouldn’t be returning to Hogwarts in September.”

Dumbledore waved his hand and smiled. “I’m sure now that Mister Potter has had time out of the castle, he will be eager to return come September.”

McGonagall raised her eyebrow. “Is there a reason for your confidence? Or is this another case of Albus Dumbledore believing he knows better than everyone else?”

Dumbledore looked at McGonagall over his glasses his steel-blue eyes piercing the stern Hogwarts Deputy Headmistress who frowned. “Don’t look at me like I am an errant first year Albus. Your interest in Harry Potter has crossed not just one line but many. That boy has been thrust into danger many times while you’ve sat idle and the staff have been left toothless. You preach forgiveness while conveniently forgetting that forgiveness must be paired with contrition. If I thought, there was a competent replacement for both the role of Deputy and Professor of Transfigurations who would challenge and defy you when needed I would walk out today. As it is less than a month before school returns, I am resigned to spending another year here. Be aware Dumbledore that I will no longer stand for your meddling in the lives of students. If one hair on any student’s head is harmed because of your disregard for their safety I will file a complaint with the Board of Governors. If they fail in their duty I will resign and take my story to the press. Maybe then someone will take notice.”

“Is that all, Deputy Headmistress?”

“Yes, Headmaster.”

McGonagall walked out, slamming the door behind her. Dumbledore scowled but remained seated. He would not act right now. Dumbledore would wait, a year is a long time, especially at Hogwarts. Minerva would come around to his way of thinking eventually. Whether she did it voluntarily or he had to nudge her in the right direction, was her decision.

* * *

_The Burrow, Ottery St. Catchpole, G.B._

Arthur leant back in his chair as he finished explaining Ginny’s situation to his wife. He’d sent the children out of the Quidditch Pitch so he and Molly could discuss this alone. Molly was almost in tears as she spoke. “My poor Ginny, those beastly French men must be frightening. Arthur, you need to go bring her home, I’ll talk to Albus. I’m sure he’ll help smooth things over.”

“Molly, Albus Dumbledore is part of the reason we’re in this mess, to begin with. His obsession with Harry Potter has warped his mind and that manipulation has extended to you.”

“Don’t be ridiculous Arthur, Albus is only doing what he thinks is best…”

“What’s _best_ for Harry Potter is to stay the hell away from Dumbledore and us! I forbid you from contacting Dumbledore about Ginny or Harry.”

Molly’s eyes widened, shocked at the tone and the order she’d just received. “You _order_ me…”

Arthur stared back at his wife defiantly, refusing to back down. “Yes, it’s clear I’ve let you run this family for too long. Seeing Ginny in that room broke my heart. The journey back here, while short gave me time to think. Bill and Charlie ran away…” Arthur could see Molly about to protest so simply raised his voice to smother her objections. “They did Molly, Percy plans to do the same as soon as he graduates. After the events of the last couple of weeks, I can’t blame them. You’re not a witch who likes being told no, and when you are you act like a child about it. Until the twins arrived home from Hogwarts, I hadn’t been aware of the howler you’d sent to Harry after he chose to take Miss Delacour to the Yule Ball…”

“That _Veela_ ensorceled him, our Ginny would have been a much more appropriate date.”

“That Veela has a name, Molly. Fleur Delacour from what Fred and George told me is a lovely person…”

“Veela’s are creatures! They ensnare gullible wizards like young Harry and make them do inappropriate things! That poor boy isn’t ready for that step!”

Arthur let out a breath trying to keep his temper in check. “I agree fourteen isn’t an appropriate age for a boy and a girl to have sex. But I also know it’s not our place to decide anything for that boy…”

“Arthur that boy needs us! He has no family apart from us!”

Arthur massaged the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath. He knew his wife wasn’t a stupid woman, she was simply set in her beliefs. Those beliefs had led them to sit at this table having this discussion. “Harry has Sirius and the Tonks. He’s also enamoured with Hermione…”

“A girl with strange ideas and loose morals! Young Harry needs strong guidance and a loving family to raise him right. Those girls have ripped him away from both and corrupted him into believing horrible things about Albus. Sirius isn’t an appropriate guardian for young Harry, he’s just come out of Azkaban! He could end up hurting poor Harry.”

“I’m sure Andromeda wouldn’t let that happen. Besides which it isn’t our business…”

“How is it not our business we’re his fam…”

“MOLLY! We are _not_ his family, he stayed with us for one summer and you sent him some Christmas jumpers. That does not make him part of our family. He was our son’s friend, that friendship ended when Ron refused to stand at Harry’s side after Harry’s name came out of the Tri-Wizard’s goblet. We’ve imposed ourselves on his life and now it’s time for us to leave him alone. If you do not, I will cast you out of this family.”

Molly gasped, raising her hand to her face. “Arthur…”

“I’m sorry Molly, but your actions could lead to a blood feud with Sirius and his family. Sirius may not be dark like his relatives, but I’m sure he’s capable of bringing the fire the Black family were famous for if we cross him. Stay away from them, please, for the sake of our children.”

Molly slumped in her chair and gave a weak nod. Memories of newspaper articles from when she was a child flooded back. The Black family were infamous for destroying any family that crossed them, politically, financially and if it came to that physically. Sirius Black would not be crossed and any request for help from Albus would now go unheeded. “What about Ginny?”

Arthur looked out the window of the Burrow. “Ginny will stay where she is for now. I hope the Healers in Paris can help her. If not…”

As Molly began to cry Arthur got out of his seat and tried to soothe her, but he knew few things could. Seeing his daughter locked up like that, lost in a fantasy made him want to cry as well.

* * *

_Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital, Paris, France_

_Magical Treatment Wing_

“So, the Soul Bond was initially between Harry and Fleur, but Harry’s magic reached out for Hermione making it a three-way bond?”

“Oui, as far as Grand-mere knows it’s the first bond of its kind,” Fleur explained. “There have been three-way bonds in the past. They’re rare but they exist, but never one created this way.”

Lily shook her head with a rueful smile on her face. When she noticed Harry staring, she explained. “Your father would have fallen off his chair laughing at this. He would have also proclaimed how proud he was of his son for bonding with two beautiful witches. A comment that would have earned him a smack around the head.”

“So… you’re ok with this?” Harry asked timidly.

Lily smiled and reached out to stroke Harry’s face. “It wouldn’t matter if I weren’t, but for what it’s worth I am. I missed out on fourteen years of my son’s life. I’m not going to sacrifice more because your relationship doesn’t fit the traditional definition of marriage. No matter the gender or the number of partners the only thing that should define a relationship is whether the people in it love each other. I believed that when I married your father and I believe it now. You are my son and I love you unconditionally, that will never change.”

Harry gave his Mum a watery smile. “I love you too Mum.”

Lily got out of her chair and wrapped her arms around Harry. “I’ve been waiting fifteen years to hear you say that.”

“Oh, you two are so mushy!” Tonks complained with a smile on her face.

“Hey! You have a boyfriend, you can’t complain!” Hermione bit back with a grin.

Harry raised an eyebrow. “I didn’t know you had a boyfriend?”

Tonks shrugged. “It’s new.”

“While we were rescuing you from your doppelganger, Tonks was picking up a hot boyfriend.”

Tonks rolled her eyes at Hermione’s teasing. “It wasn’t quite like that, but yes I have a hot boyfriend now.”

As the group rolled their eyes Andromeda entered with Apolline. “Ok, your paperwork is finished so we can leave. Sirius is still unconscious but once the sedative is out of his system, you’ll be able to see him.”

“Another of Dumbledore’s crimes…” Harry muttered darkly.

“Soon, Arry, soon,” Fleur said soothingly.

“Harry, I know you’ve spent a lot of time in this hospital recently, but I’m hoping you might stay for a little longer. I’ve been talking to a colleague who is an optometrist and he’s wondering if you’d like to get your eyes examined as a first step to getting magical contact lenses.”

Harry blinked and then smiled. “Are you sure, the only time I went to see an optometrist the man said my eyesight was so bad I would never be able to wear contacts. Unless I had corrective surgery and Aunt Petunia immediately shot that down.”

A dark expression came over Lily’s face when Harry said the name of her sister. She vowed to herself she’d one day make the bitch pay for letting her bastard husband hurt her little boy. “I’m certainly all for it, nothing should hide my handsome son’s beautiful green eyes behind glasses.”

With his bond mates nodding in agreement Harry found himself marched down to the magical optometrist. After a few minutes of examination, the healer smiled. “Oh yes, with a corrective potion to fix most of the issues with his eyes Mister Potter will qualify for magical contacts.”

“Can I do it today?” Harry asked.

“Not today, firstly the potion takes time to brew a few days at least as long as there isn’t a backlog in the potions lab. Second, your magic is still recovering from your recent trauma. I wouldn’t let you drink the potion today even if it were ready. We’ll schedule a follow-up appointment in a week, and we’ll have the potion ready by then.”

* * *

_Diagon Alley, London, GB_

Amelia Bones sat at the head of the table of a private room at the Leaky Cauldron, around her was at least one parent or Guardian representing the Longbottom, Lovegood, Diggory, Chang, Edgecombe, Greengrass, Abbott, and Davis families. Knowing no one else was going to arrive, Amelia got the meeting started. “Thank you for coming today. We all know by now what happened in Paris over the last few weeks. I think we all recognize that Hogwarts is no longer safe for our families if Dumbledore is Headmaster. I wanted to gather all of you to see what your plans were for the upcoming school year.”

Amos Diggory was the first to speak. “I’ve discussed this with Cedric and his and Cho’s views align with yours, Amelia. Unfortunately, Dumbledore has too much power, even being stripped of his roles as Chief Warlock and Supreme Mugwump he still has powerful allies who will let him remain Headmaster even with a viable alternative.”

“Augusta and I have spoken at length with Neville and Daphne, they worry about their friends and would prefer to be anywhere Dumbledore is not. I agree with them but see few alternatives except moving their education overseas.” Adrian Greengrass added.

“That is why I’ve removed Susan from Hogwarts for the coming term. She will be attending Beauxbaton from September First, an option I believe both Harry and Hermione are considering.”

“I heard a rumour that Potter had a change of heart, is that true?” Amos asked.

Amelia frowned glancing around the table. “This information cannot leave this room. I’m only sharing it in hopes it will impress upon you the seriousness of the situation.” This got a round of nods from the assembled parents. Amelia quickly summarised the events that took place following Harry’s kidnapping leading up to this morning. “I got a message from Auror Tonks about an hour before I came here. Harry’s original personality has resurfaced, and the Healers are confident he will make a full recovery.”

“Albus Dumbledore potioning a student… the boy-who-lived. To what end?” Patrick Abbott asked in disbelief.

“That’s a question only Dumbledore can answer I’m afraid,” Amelia replied as she opened her bag and placed a bundle of parchment in the centre of the table. “I have spoken to Madame Maxime and she’s willing to re-open her rolls for a limited number of Hogwarts students. As much as I would like to remove all students from Dumbledore’s care that’s not an option right now. I say this now as Susan’s guardian, not as the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Take these forms home with you and discuss this with your children. We not only represent the parents of Harry’s closest friends we are also among the most influential purebloods remaining in Britain. Withdrawing our children from Hogwarts and sending them to Beauxbaton instead is a powerful political message. A message that may motivate the Hogwarts Board of Governors to re-examine Dumbledore’s continued presence in the castle.”

* * *

_Chateau Delacour, Neuilly-sur-Seine, France_

_5 August 1995_

Harry walked down to breakfast having collapsed into bed immediately after returning to the Chateau the previous day. He was relieved to find out that Hermione had been keeping his familiar fed and watered while he was gone. Hedwig had given him a stern talking to with her eyes before he showered and dressed for the day. Harry was able to placate his mail owl by assuring her he would have mail for her later when he finished his letters to his friends to let them know he was fine.

Harry stopped at the entrance to the dining room when he spotted Lily sitting talking to Apolline. When the two women spotted him, they smiled. “Oh, um, hi Missus Delacour, hi… Mum.”

“Hello sweetheart, did you sleep well?” Lily asked, her smile increasing in wattage when she heard him say the word ‘Mum’.

Harry looked pleased as he walked over to the table and sat beside her. “Uh, yeah, I was exhausted. I still feel tired today.”

“Your magical core is still recovering Arry, Fleur and Hermione are still asleep. They went to bed minutes after you.”

Harry frowned looking down at his plate. “They shouldn’t have…”

Lily reached out and took Harry by his chin moving his head around to face her. “Harry, stop. Hermione and Fleur told you yesterday that this wasn’t your fault and I guess we’ll have to keep drumming it into you until you hear us. This. Was. Not. Your. Fault.”

Harry chuckled as his Mum tapped his nose to emphasis each word. “Yes, Mum.”

Lily sighed and shook her head wrapping her arms around him. “What am I going to do with you…”

“Give me lots of hugs?” Harry asked meekly, wrapping his arms around her in turn.

“I think I can do that.”

“Do you have any plans for the day Lily?” Apolline asked as they returned their attention to breakfast, Harry quickly loading his plate with the delicious French food he’d become accustomed to.

“As long as my son doesn’t eat you out of house and home…” Lily commented dryly with a smile on her face. “Andi should be finished transferring guardianship of Harry to me today. I should also be getting a letter back from Gringotts sometime this morning confirming my regency over House Potter…”

Harry looked up from his food. “Is that important?”

Lily scowled as she replied, gently stroking Harry’s untamed raven hair to let him know the scowl wasn’t directed at him. “Apolline told me how little you know about the Wizarding world, but it’s still a shock to see it. Harry the Potter’s were a Most Noble and Ancient House in Britain. That means they were part of the upper echelon of Wizarding society. They contributed to important decisions about how Wizarding Britain was run. When your Grandfather Charlus spoke, people listened. Your Dad was just starting to gain that level of respect when he died and one day, you’ll take the mantle of Head of House.”

“But you said regency… can’t you become Head of House?”

Lily bit back a laugh and shook her head. “Wizarding Britain is Patriarchal, which means in most cases only men can become Head of House or hold senior positions in Government. Amelia Bones is an exception.” Lily explained anticipating Harry’s question with Apolline adding. “Amelia was too good at her job to be denied the post, and she had the backing of the then-current Minister and the former head of the DMLE, Barty Crouch.”

Lily took this as her cue to resume explaining. “Harry I can only become regent to House Potter until you’re of age, which is seventeen. Once you turn seventeen, you’ll become the Head of House Potter, you’ll legally become, an adult and you’ll be able to marry _whomever_ you want.”

Harry’s face lit up red at this suggestion. “I don’t think we should mention that to Missus Granger…”

“Too late Harry, Missus Granger already heard your Mum,” Emma responded with a grin as Harry looked as if he wanted to dive under the table for safety. “Relax Harry, I know that once Hermione turns seventeen, she’ll be an adult in the Magical world. If when you turn seventeen you want to get married, you’ll have my support. All I ask is you two don’t make me a Grandmother for a good few years yet.”

“Seconded,” Apolline added from behind her teacup.

“Third.” Lily agreed.

“I get it…” Harry groaned burying his face in his hands as the three women laughed. Lily leaned in and kissed him on the head. “Just because we support you doesn’t mean we can’t tease you a little. Mother’s prerogative.”

“There’s no such thing,” Harry mumbled from behind his hands.

“Yes, there is, Emma was telling me about it last night.” Lily countered with a grin on her face.

“Why does the idea of the two of you hanging around together fill me with dread?” Harry asked, more to himself than anyone else.

**To Be Continued…**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to keep going but I’m busy with a new job that has had a detrimental effect on my writing time. So, I found a good place to stop and stopped. I hope the next chapter will be longer, but no promises.
> 
> This story is 5-7 chapters from wrapping up so let’s look forward a bit. I have three stories in the process of being finalised. I say three because one is only about 3-5 chapters long so once I’ve finished writing it I’ll post a chapter a week until it’s complete. Then the two longer-form stories will start taking shape. I’m not going to talk about what any of these stories are about but they’re all Harmony or Harmony+. What I’ll promise though is I won’t be revisiting Fourth Year at Hogwarts again for a while. And even though my short story is Flower Harmony after a fashion I’m resting that pairing for a while as well.


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